#( ✰ answered memes ⟶ katniss )

[nightwhispcrs]

@likecometsx asked ... ♫ beth and katniss

katniss sat perched on a barstool at a diner they liked to frequent when their mind was racing . she felt eyes on her as she sipped from her straw , so she glanced over to the person at their side . "i thought drinking this cherry cola would make the world seem less cruel . stupid , right ?" they shrugged , wishing they could forget how cold and dark everything seemed right now . ( ♫ 'cold heart' — the kooks )

[clatoera]

Always Remember We're Burned For Better Epilogue: I Vow I Will Always Be Yours, For We Survived the Great War

Here we are. The end of an era. I have..so much to say.

First of all..if you do not like the canon epilogue you will not like this. If you do not like the choices Katniss makes you will not make the choices they make.

Secondly...This fic took me exactly forty weeks to write. That is intentional, as forty weeks is the length of an average pregnancy is forty weeks. This is my baby. You have all travelled with me from the middle of my third year until the middle of my residency interview season. I hope you will continue to follow for what comes next, but this is my baby. Today I release her into the world for the last time, and I am incredibly sad about it. Thank you for loving her with me.

Third.. I hope along this journey you have grown to empathize with the four careers of the first Hunger Games Book. I hope you see them as the children they were, I hope you have even grown to care about them. I am a careers apologist (one of the OGs thank you very much) and I hope you have all opened your hearts to them, as well.

Finally.. thank you. I will never be able to thank you all enough for your endless support and comments and likes and reblogs and asks. Thank you to you all. I of course want to give shoutouts as usual. There are so many people beyond this list. Who I don't know well, or I don't talk to enough to want to bother them with a tag (like you @dukeysquid I dont want to bother you). But you are ALL seen. You are all loved.

I cant give one to the og, who has to keep her socials clean, but you know who you are. You are the first person I ever told about this fic, and have been around for allll the changes. Thank you friend.

@mollywog a TRUE og who has stuck around even though this fic is far far from her usual andher cup of tea. She's a real one. I love her. I thank you, friend.

@cyansadness another OG friend. I don't even know what you're into these days..but thank you for listening to the earlier iterations.

@bodyelectric77 a NEW friend, who has given me such insight on Enobaria and the older careers. Thank you for taking a chance on this fic which is not in your usual wheelhouse.

@crookedlyniceperson I am so sad for my last set of memes, but so thankful for the memes that brought us together. Thank you, and I cannot believe the insane AU in our DMs that I'm going to bring up after this immediately in the DMs. Thank you.

@clarascrabarmy ANOTHER OG who I always feel like i'm bothering, but I could COUNT ON YOU to read these when I was dropping them at 4 am when I was on night shift. I love you, and I thank you.

@lwveless my little college baby I dont know if you're even around but I wanted to give you love for loving Marvel with me.

@kentwells a TRUE BACKBONE of this fic. A sounding board of all my insanity. I want you ALL to know that the outcome of Glimmer and Marvel (Namely them not being back together) is entirely her fault <3 It was her idea and it is her fault. I love you. I love you. I love you.

Ultimately, I cannot thank @ohhowwehavefallen enough. In the last nine months you have become one of my legitimate besties. You have supported me here and in my actual life beyond anything I can put into words here. Our constant, non stop Clato aus and talks literally keep me going on my bad days. I love you. I thank you. And of NOTE: She is entirely responsible for the wedding rites of District Two. I struggled so much creating them, it took me forever to figure out and I owe the answer to you. I owe this fic to you. I love you. Thank you bestie.

Fun facts:

The kids at the end are not named because it is hard to name them but I have ideas <3

There are jokes for most of my friends here

The sequel is called Picket Fences, Sharp as Knives (High Infidelity, Taylor Swift)

Alright.

AO3

tumblr masterpost

Title from The Great War, Taylor Swift.

The End.

Thirteen months after the end of the war

“Clove, stand still.”  Glimmer clicks her tongue, hands tugging tighter the fabric at the small of Clove’s back for emphasis. “If you fidget I can’t get these buttons. I don’t know what I was thinking when I added them, knowing Cato’s probably just going to rip them off like a heathen–”

“Oh no he won’t, Glimmer, you have no idea how much he’s going to love it.” Clove assured, taking in the length of her body in the mirror. It was the first time she had seen the dress too, and unsurprisingly Glimmer did far surpass any expectation she had. “You missed your calling with design, seriously, this is insane. You made this?”

The ivory crepe fabric was fit like a second skin through her thighs, where it fell freely to the floor, even fanning out a little behind her. The trail end of the train had little windows of lace, with the entire trim a continuous border of hand placed lace appliqués. The top of the dress was similarly overlain with lace, a few pieces trailing up at her hips before coming to cover the entire top half of the dress. The thin v-shaped straps were made of the intentionally placed lace, and though the entire back of the dress was open from the middle of her back upwards, a couple appliqués seem to float along the top of the fabric. Even the open sides are overlapped with the ivory design. The most unexpected aspect may be the deep cut of the sweetheart neckline, and the large strip of open skin from her neck to midway down her sternum.

“Of course I made it Clove! It’s just for you! I even used the lace from that dress, like you wanted. I was worried I didn’t have enough but with the open neckline I made it work.” Glimmer hooks the last button with the use of her littlest finger nail, pushes herself to standing. “It’s going to be the only wedding dress I ever make, though. It’s an honor but I was so afraid of messing it up. Besides…everyone else is dead, already married, or not going to be.” 

Clove turns to the side, catching the back of the dress in the mirror so she can fully appreciate it. She could not, no matter even if she wanted, wipe the smile that stretched across her face. “I know you think the deep plunge is a lot, but I don’t want to ruin it with blood–”

“I know, I know, you District Two freaks have a fucking blood ritual.” Glimmer bristles, taking her hand to wipe at Clove’s side, to swipe away some of the golden glitter from her own dress that transferred in the hustle and bustle of getting dressed. “You know in District One we just exchange jewelry like normal people.”

“We do that too.” Clove teases, bringing her left hand up to wiggle her fingers in front of Glimmer’s face. There was certainly no lack of the jewelry aspect either, with a flashy, oval shaped diamond with the equally shining gold band that had come to live on Clove’s left hand. “And it’s not a District Two tradition, Glimmer, it’s a District Two Victor tradition. We are the only ones that are left– we’re also the only two victors who have ever married each other. We have to do it.”

Glimmer grabs at Clove’s left hand, running her thumb over the diamond with a reverence only a girl from One, especially one with no marriage prospects of her own, would manage. “I just want to know how he got it. The diamond mines in one have been closed from the war, this should be impossible to get. I’ll never get my hands on one of these, and my cousin worked in gemstone acquisition. I should theoretically have a whole closet full.”  

If she can smile any bigger, she somehow manages. Clove twists at the ring on her finger, exceptionally excited to add another band underneath in just a short hour. “He’s had it for years. From before the war, back before the Quarter Quell....he had it since the seventy fourth games.” 

“I don’t think anyone loves anyone else more than he loves you.” There is a wistful edge to her voice that Glimmer tries her best to tamper, though the loss of love still does not sting any less even now, almost exactly one year after the end of the war. “It’s extraordinary.” 

Clove grabs Glimmer by her wrists, wrapping the woman’s arms around her waist so they were half hugging, still facing the mirror. Glimmer rests her chin on top of Clove’s shoulder, careful not to disrupt the soft, free flowing curls that were still cooling at her shoulders. “Thank you, Glimmer.” 

Clove takes a moment to soak in Glimmer, too. She would have laughed, and maybe stabbed, anyone who told her two or three years ago that Glimmer Belcourt from District One would be standing here getting her ready for her wedding. And yet, here she was. 

Looking at their reflection in the mirror she could see there was finally a little bit more to Glimmer, far more like the girl she met in the capitol, and not like the starved skeleton of a girl she found in district thirteen. Her hair was perfectly curled and incredibly shiny. Her skin had the healthiest, most intrinsic glow to it, with the most beautiful pink flush in her cheeks. Even the gold shimmery ball gown– yes, ball gown– that she wore only added to the warm tones in her skin. Oh Glimmer, how she did indeed shine once again. 

“Glimmer? Why did you pick a glittery ball gown for a wedding in my backyard?” Clove raises a dark eyebrow, craning her neck to make eye contact with Glimmer directly rather than with their reflections. “It is summer, isn’t all that tulle going to weight you down.”

Glimmer cracks a smile– a genuine, gorgeous smile that Clove had not seen since a time before the war, a time before Glimmer’s heart was broken, a time long ago on a rooftop in the capitol– and gives half a shrug. “I don’t think I'm going to get many opportunities after this. I always wanted to wear one.”  She steps back, giving a little spin for Clove to truly appreciate her hard work on her own dress. It was solid gold, glitter covering every spot of the tulle underneath. The dress sat just off her shoulder like a princess, and truthfully the dress moved around her like something of a fairy tale. “Cash always got to wear big princess dresses in her interviews and parties and stuff after she won. I was so jealous, and when I won I was so so excited to get my turn. Cash was always in pink and I was hoping I’d get the same..they skipped the ballgown stage with me and went right to the– yeah. I just…always wanted to wear one. They never let me be pretty, it was always sexy and sultry and glamorous. I just wanted to be pretty.  And today is my last chance… Thank you, Clove. For letting me have this.”

Clove’s hand slips down to grab Glimmer’s and gives the softest squeeze. “You look so, so pretty. You look beautiful.” 

“You look beautiful, Clove. Thank you for letting me be part of this. Even though I am your only friend–” Glimmer teases, smile never leaving her face, revealing that it is truly just a joke.

“Oh way to ruin me trying to be nice,” Clove taunts, but turns to face the mirror once again. “Thank you, too, Glimmer. For all of it. The dress. Being here. Buttoning me in.”

“Of course! Now, I think I'm about done…oh! Do you need lipstick, I know you’ll just get it all over him, but–”

“Blood ritual, Glimmer.”

“Right. Freaks. Okay!” Glimmer reaches down to fan Clove’s dress out behind her, gently running her hand over Clove’s bare arm. “Okay. You look beautiful. Enobaria should be in soon to do your hair… I’ll see you out there.” She pauses, taking a moment to appreciate her months of hard work, finally coming to a head on Clove’s body. She lets out a content little sigh, approving of her work, approving of the little victor girl in front of her. “I’m just… really really happy for you, Clove.” She squeezes her arm one last time before slipping out the door, a flurry of gold and glitter.

Clove takes her final moment alone to look at herself in the mirror. She looks more adult than she ever has in her entire life, in a tight white dress, long dark curls free around her shoulders. It is different than any other time she has been dressed like this in her life. There is no Capitol makeup obscuring her freckles, no intricate twists and pins in her hair.  Notably, of course, are the faded scars along her shoulders, elbows, wrists. In a different world her scars would be wiped away, her skin unblemished and holding no evidence of the horrors she endured. Now her skin bears the proof of her survival. 

She had begged Glimmer to give her sleeves to cover them. Glimmer in return had insisted there just wasn’t enough lace for sleeves, and even if it were untrue, maybe now Clove could see that she was right to deny her request. 

Her moment alone is only brief, when the bedroom door in her usually untouched Victor’s Village house flies open again. This time, another blonde flurry of tulle rushes in, this one only half the size of the last. 

Cora rushes in, in her little white dress. It’s gorgeous, too, with layers and layers of tulle with beautiful hand beading on the edges that make her look like she wears snow covered rose petals. Glimmer clearly spent excessive time on this dress, too.

“What else am I going to do with my time?” Glimmer had asked when Clove insisted she didn’t need to go to all these lengths for them. 

Clove turns from the mirror to look at her sister in law, and with the girl’s ever increasing height she doesn't even need to kneel to hug her any longer.  “Oh you look like a princess, Cora.” She pulls her into her arms, leaning down to kiss the top of her perfect, ringlet curls. “An absolute princess.” She does crouch down just a little, holding Cora’s angelic little face in either of her hands to look at her from eye level. 

“Cato’s jeeeeealous I get to see you and he can’t.” Cora gives her a mischievous smile, one that Clove had seen on Cato hundreds of times and hopefully would see hundreds more. “You look soooo pretty Clove..” Cora reaches her hand out and gently touches the lace on Clove’s hip. “This is so sparkly.”

Clove puts her hand on top of Cora’s, squeezing so gently. “Glimmer really knows what she’s doing, huh?” 

At the mention of the blonde woman Cora somehow lights up even more. When Cora met Glimmer it was like the stars aligned for them both. Glimmer, who needed to see this beautiful little girl grow up safe, loved, and far from the grasp of the games and the capitol and Snow’s best clients. Cora, who thinks she has a real life princess in her family, to teach her all the things Clove never got to learn as an orphan girl. “She has a pretty princess dress, too, Clove.”

“You should tell her that, she’ll love to hear it.” Clove straightened herself, afraid to wrinkle the tight fabric of her gown. “Thank you for coming over to see me, since everyone’s probably having so much fun over with Cato.”

Cora gives a little half shrug, bouncing forward onto her toes before rocking back onto her little mary jane heels. “Marvel is lying on the couch saying he’s sick, and he won’t get up. Finnick is telling him to rally.. What does ‘rally’ mean, Clove?”

Clove’s eyes go wide, and she would not be shocked if alarm is written on her face. That is not something she was anticipating explaining to Cora for at least seven or eight more years. “You know, you should ask Cato when you go back, that sounds like a boy thing.” 

The little girl accepts that answer, and nods enthusiastically. “Okay! Oh! Clove! I have a present for you!”

“A present for me?” Clove kneels down to her height again, disregarding the fear over wrinkles and creases in the fabric. There was so much more in life than the perfect press of a dress. “That's so sweet, Cora, you didn’t have to do that–”

“It’s yours though!” Cora digs into the little pocket of her dress, fishing out a little silver pile that she holds out in the palm of her hand towards Clove. “You told me to keep it safe, see? Do you wanna wear it?”

It takes all in Clove not to grab the necklace out of her hand, to snatch it and keep it safe as soon as she recognizes what it is. She doesn’t have to, because Cora unclips it for her and gestures like she wants to secure it around her neck for her. With a nod, Clove pulls her hair out of the way, and blinks hard, willing away tears that would otherwise ruin the minimal makeup she was amenable to wearing. Clove runs the tip of her fingers over the script C, the sterling silver chain tarnished and worn, emblematic of over twenty years of wear. 

Clove pulls her in, both hands around her little shoulders as her hand comes to cradle the back of her head. “Thank you, Cora Jade. Thank you so much for keeping it safe for me.” She kisses the side of her temple as the door flies open once again. 

“Clove lets get this- oh! Cora. Cato is looking for you.” Enobaria warns before she steps into the room. “Something about getting to sample the cookies–”

“Bye Clove!” 

The little girl nearly runs out the door and out the door before Clove can process it, and she is left staring at the doorway where Enobaria enters.

“God damn, look at you Enobaria” Clove calls out, pursing her lips and looking her mentor up and down. Enobaria rolls her eyes but leans on the door frame. She’s opted for a well tailored black velvet suit, except that her skin is completely bare underneath the jacket that is held together with a single gold button. Her natural curls frame her face, tamed only by the gold victor’s crown around the center of her forehead. “You look hot.”

“Yeah, well, were you expecting me to be in a ballgown like Glitter, she looks ridiculous. I didn’t know we were playing dress up today.” Enobaria flashes her a coy grin, a grin that is no longer serrated like a shark, but restored to her natural, blunt smile after the war. No need to upkeep a defense when the threat is eliminated. 

“Oh be nice, she feels pretty, Baria. Let her feel pretty.” Clove warns, holding her hands out to take the bundle of flowers that Enobaria brings her in her left hand. “And it’s Glimmer, You really should know her name if you’re going to continue to sleep with her sister.”

“Chill, I know her name. And I'm kidding, I had to talk Cash out of feathers this morning. You’re welcome.” Enobaria’s eyes roam from her toes to the tip of her head and she gives just the slightest nod of approval. “You look like such a grown up.”

“I’ve been an adult for a minute, Baria.” Clove reminds her, but does turn her head to catch her appearance in the mirror once again. She feels almost vain for the way she keeps looking at herself, but if there is ever a moment to feel that, it’s now. “I feel like I wore a lot of dresses on the tour that showed a lot of skin, too-”

“And you were a child, then. A little girl playing dress up, even if you didn’t think so. Now, you look like such a woman. You are just beautiful” Enobaria comes behind Clove, and brushes her hair back off of her lace capped shoulders. She looks at their shared reflection a little longer, and Enobaria can’t help but imagine Clove’s mother would have looked all the same. 

“Noone uses that word very often for me, but you all keep saying it today.” Clove shifts the flowers in her hands– she isn’t entirely sure what they are but they are red and white and there is no rose in sight– and swallows her pride as she locks eyes with Enobaria. “You told me I was going to thank you, one day. Back when you told me you were pulling us from the same games. You said I’d thank you one day, and I guess that day is today. Thank you. For not letting us kill each other, or die together. Thank you for keeping me alive my entire life. In so many ways, I wouldn’t be here right now, if you hadn’t been there.” 

“Keep telling me I'm right, I like to hear you admit it.” Enobaria teases, but gently squeezes both of her arms. “I’m proud of you, Clove. Do I wish it were literally anyone but Cato, yes, but I'm still proud of you.” Before Clove can refute, she turns her away from the mirror and to face her. “I’m kidding. I’m not kidding about the fact that we all know you should have chosen something other than white to wear considering what you did on national television–”

“Enobaria!”

“I’m proud of you. I mean it. Now. Lift your chin.” Enobaria nudges the tip of her chin up with her knuckle, before reaching to lift the golden band of metal from inside her suit pocket. 

She centers Clove’s head, before gently and intentionally placing her well earned Victor’s crown along the top of her head. Once it is settled she pulls her loose curls to the front, untucking pieces from behind her ear. Once she is happy, she places her hands on Clove’s shoulders and twists her to face the mirror. “There. You’re ready. The last Victor of District Two..”

It had been a debate, how many of the traditions to follow. District Two had enough Victors that they had their own marriage traditions. It was questionable, if in a world without games did it really make sense to wear the crowns and say the lines? Ultimately they decided, yes. Because before they were here, before they were considered rebels, before they were even victors…they were partners. Partners who gave their entire lives to end up here. 

“Thank you.” Clove emphasizes again, nodding at herself in the mirror. The dress, the flowers, the crown… he’ll love it. “I think i’m ready.”

“Perfect. I’ll see you down there then. If you change your mind just say the word, we can sneak out the front.” Enobaria promises, stepping back, giving her one final look over before turning to leave. “Good luck.”

“Wait!” Clove freezes, suddenly overly aware of the pounding in her chest, the deafening sound of her own heartbeat in her ears. She has not done any of this alone, and she will not start now. “Will you walk with me?”

Enobaria pauses, and cocks her head as if she’s debating it before cracking a smile and holding out her hand. “Thought you’d never ask, kid”

Clove is unsure if she blacks out in the following moments or if time skips on her, but the next thing she knows is she is on the other end of a short aisle from Cato. 

Cato. Identical crown on his head, perfectly tailored black tuxedo clinging in all the right ways. She notices the white button down underneath is unbuttoned most of the way down his chest, and if she weren’t so aware of the blood pounding in her ears she’d make fun of him for it. 

She wants to kiss that absolutely infuriating smirk off his face, and she’s about to. When Clove looks up and catches his eyes with her own she is sure her heart stopped. She’s vaguely aware of Enobaria to her right, holding her arm and guiding her the twenty or so steps, but all Clove really can recognize is him.

She doesn’t absorb their friends line either side of the short aisle, in perfectly floral lined chairs. Johanna making a face, or Annie and Finnick waving with their baby. She doesn’t notice that Glimmer is sitting directly beside Marvel, her dress acting practically as a blanket over Marvel’s hands. Cashmere and Gloss are there, somewhere amongst the florals. She does not notice Cato’s mother in the front or little Cora in her lap. There are others– kids they went to the academy with, friends of his parents– but none of them matter, not now. 

All Clove knows is that the second she’s in reach of him, he grabs her by the forearms and pulls her into a burning, heated kiss with a hand on her face. Clove half heartedly tosses the flowers in her hands in the general direction of Glimmer, and grabs firmly on the unbuttoned edges of his shirt to pull him into her. 

“Hey! Not yet.” Brutus interrupts from his place at the head of the altar and the laughs of their friends pull them out of their locked embrace. 

Even when they pull away, his hands are still on her hips, holding her flush against him. “Hi.” He whispers, a boyish smile spread across his face, a joy in his eyes that she isn’t sure she’s ever seen. 

“Hi.” Clove whispers back, a heat in her face that she is all too aware of as she catches the way his eyes are trailing down the front of her dress and her body. 

Brutus must repeat himself once or twice before finally reaching out and breaking the reverie in which they stare at each other by nudging Cato’s shoulder. 

“For the third time…” He starts, and the distinct howling laugh of Johanna firmly plants them in reality. “I never thought I would be officiating a backyard victor wedding a year after a war ended the Hunger Games.” Brutus explains, before giving a jerk of his head to signal Clove to take a step back away from Cato, who is still holding her body against his. She obliges begrudgingly, knowing the moments they have left apart are counting down by the second. 

As Brutus begins to read from a long book of District Two traditions, Clove feels Cato tighten his grip on both of her hands. “You look incredible.” He mouths, and Clove can’t help but feel the blush rising to her face again.

“Like the lace?” She mouths in response, and sees the recognition fall over his face as his features soften just enough for Clove and Clove alone to notice.  

“Like I was saying.” Brutus raises his voice, once again snapping the two of them back into the moment beyond just themselves. “ In District Two, we are not known for verbal displays of love. We do not have deep professions of love through vows. This tradition is rooted deep in the history of District Two Victors. We are raised and trained in bloodshed. We are also aware of the vulnerability of allowing someone to raise a weapon against us, and trust them so entirely not to cut too deeply. This is particularly special for these two, for many many reasons. As all of us know, they are the only two District Two Victors to marry each other, and they will be the only ones to ever do so. What is most special, of course, is that these two were raised to be partners. I remember the day we paired them up, this giant monster of a boy and this feisty, scary little girl. They hated each other and then when they didn’t hate each other was when it became a problem for Enobaria, myself, and the other trainers. We made them too good of partners, because here we are today. What you’re about to witness is the blood oath of Victors. It is tradition to use their weapon of choice. Cato, will be first.”

Their hands fall as Enobaria comes and first, places the hilt of a sword in his hand, before slipping the handle of a knife into hers. Vaguely, Clove can hear Glimmer go “oh my god an actual blood ritual’ from her place in the front row of chairs, followed by a whispered “fuck I hate blood” immediately after from Marvel. 

Clove takes a step back, making room for the duration of the silver blade of the sword between them, and tilts her chin up to give him space. She does not flinch when the sharp tip slices through the top layer of her skin overlying her heart, she does not unlock her eyes from his when she feels the sticky warmth of blood pooling and dripping down the front of her chest. It’s not deep, but it’s enough to sting. Her eyes are locked on his, never once breaking when she feels his thumb wiping through the blood on her chest.  She feels like prey and a prize at the same time, with the dark look in his eyes locked on her. He breaks their locked gaze to look down at her hand, where he slides a solid gold ring onto her left hand, resting securely above the diamond she already wears. 

She does not even wait for instruction that she is next. She steps forward and the knife in her hand closes the space between them, and Clove cannot help but flick her wrist into the shape of a C as she slices into the skin directly over his heart. She hesitates, for only a moment, watching the blood run down the plane of his chest, before she too runs her thumb over the blood. Clove cannot get her hands to work fast enough as she grabs his left hand in both of hers, and works as fast as she can to get the gold band on his hand, to claim him as hers, hers, hers forever. 

Brutus is talking again, but it doesn’t matter. He’s got her by the waist, and she’s holding his face in her hands. She brings her bloodied thumb to his lips, smearing his own blood along his lower lip as he does the same to her. 

“I love you.” He whispers first, pressing his forehead against hers, pulling her body against his, taking careful care to only touch the bare skin of her back with his bloodied finger, not daring to stain the lace she wears. 

“I love you.” Clove responds, and is somewhat aware of Brutus in the background formally announcing them as married in the rites of victors. Cato Hadley and his wife Clove Kentwell Hadley.

 Her thumb hovers over his lip, before she threads her fingers into the hair at the nape of his neck. “You’re my partner.”

“You’re mine.” Is all Cato gets out in response before he crushes his lips into hers. 

The taste of blood and each other is familiar and enchanting and all exciting all at once. 

It tastes like victory. 

Pictures, dinner, all of it passes in a blur. 

It’s nearly night now, and drinks are long past flowing. Cato’s mother has taken Cora to Clove’s house for the night, allowing the adult behavior to come out in full force. 

Clove is pressed into his side, his arm around her hips, hand firmly grasping the top of her thigh, when the sun starts to go down and Marvel makes a point to gather everyone’s attention.  

“Hey guys, you all unfortunately know who I am. Noone asked me to speak, in fact Cato explicitly begged me not to this morning, and Clove threatened that if I did she’d cut off my-”

“Anyway!’ Glimmer interrupts, taking the champagne glass from his hand and holding it at her side and out of his reach. “I also was told not to do this. But I planned this whole thing, and so I think I can say whatever I want. Besides, you owe us this, because we did keep watch while the two of you fucked in the middle of the Hunger Games. Also, the world was convinced for a little while that all four of us were-”

Marvel interrupts before she can continue to ramble on.“Originally, we were going to do this separately. I was going to talk about Cato, she was going to talk about Clove. I’m sure no one's expecting Glimmer and I to be doing this together..this is quite literally as close as we’ve physically been to each other in months.” Marvel begins, and turns his attention directly to Cato and Clove. 

“What are they doing?” Clove gets out through clenched teeth, pseudo-rage flashing in her eyes. Maybe it was the drinks, maybe it was the pure joy she felt, but she couldn’t find it in her to actually be angry with them. 

“Embarrassing themselves.” Cato pulls her closer, and leans them back in their chairs. “What's the worst they could say?”

“Noone expected us to be friends! We all could have so easily ended up in the same games, all of us dead.” Glimmer begins, a giggle escaping her that had Clove not been with her all day, she would have assumed to have been nervous. But no, that was the giggle of a drunk girl, who had been drinking mimosas since sunrise, that is about to recount something horrendous. “But by all accounts..things worked out for us. The stars aligned, fate stepped in..whatever you want to say. And I know Clove didn’t like me the day I met her. I can’t blame her, I looked at her and said we should have a double wedding and look where we are! They’re married and me and Marvel here can’t look at each other for more than five minutes without one of us leaving in tears–”

“He was drunk crying about her this morning. He had three shots and went down, going on and on about how he threw away the love of his life.” Cato leans over to whisper to his wife, who whips her head over to look at him with wide, amused eyes. “Finnick was literally holding his head in his lap like..stroking his hair. It wasn’t even eight a.m. yet.”

“I heard about that… You need to teach your seven year old sister what rally means, by the way.” Clove admits, poking him in the knee playfully. 

“Well one of us wasn’t stupid enough to throw away the best thing we’d ever have.” Marvel gets out, and Clove gasps so loudly at his repetition of the words Cato just whispered that everyone whips their head around to look at her this time. “Anyway! Clove also found me exceptionally annoying, and it’s okay, everyone does!”

“But what Clove has never heard about, is this story. We met Cato during his tour, of course, and he was this cocky kid. We thought he was just a standard District Two victor, nothing special.” Glimmer goes on, this time bringing the glass she confiscated from Marvel to her own lips and draining it. Clearly, the slip from Marvel left her flustered, too. “But, then it was the seventy third games. And Cato would not shut up about how good this girl was. He never looked away from her on screen. He stole all the sponsors talking about how incredible she was. He thought he was being so nonchalant and sly about it…but we all knew.”

“And I remember getting a knock on my door in the middle of the night. It was Glimmer, but I was positive it was someone saying Clove died and that Cato was coming to kill us all. Because I knew, if Clove had died, every single one of us, our tributes, and anyone else he could get his hands on, we're going to be dead.”

“And then it was down to the final few. I remember him sitting on that on that couch, leaning forward with his elbows on his knees, rubbing his hands together so so nervous. And she threw this knife and she missed and I saw the color drain from his face. The fear in his eyes when he thought you were going to die, Clove, I wish I could say that was the only time I had ever seen it.” Glimmer shakes her head, the curls in her hair starting to slowly fall and frizz around her face like a little halo. “But then she won. And most of us were there when it happened, most of us remember the way he jumped up. And Clove, without thinking, he pumped his fist in the air and he said “that's my girl.” And we had all known. But the look on his face..I’ll never forget it. That boy was so deeply in love, and today I am so sure he still is.” 

Marvel clears his throat, and it is clear from the way his face drops that there is a serious turn about to be taken. “I mentioned that we were originally going to speak only for one of them. But, it is a disservice to the way they love each other to do that. I went through the worst experience of my entire life with Clove, in the capitol, and Glimmer similarly can speak for what she went through with Cato. We’re so uniquely privileged to have seen the way you both love each other so deeply. Most of you know, or unfortunately were part of, the horrific things we went through in the Capitol. Clove…she had it worse than maybe anyone. We all know that Clove is incredibly stubborn, and incredibly strong. What I am unfortunately aware of, myself, is the extent of what was done to her. It is not my story to tell. But I know that all those fuckers wanted was to get her to scream, and she refused. She wasn’t going to give them that. The only thing Clove ever asked for, wanted, and she’s going to kill me for exposing this, but the only time I ever saw her cry in those entire months of torture…was Cato. It was towards the very end, and I was scared, truly scared, to know they had brought her to the point of crying for him even alone in her cell... because I thought that meant we were all going to die if even Clove was at her breaking point. There is a deep, deep, incredible trust and love between them, beyond anything I have ever seen.”

At some point Glimmer had started crying, because it is through heavy tears that she concludes her aspect. “We are so lucky, to be witnesses not only to today, but to the way you two love. Through multiple Hunger Games and forced separation and a war..there’s never been a moment where I thought of you as separate. You are always Cato and Clove. Please don’t kill me for saying this, but I mean it, when I say you are my best friends. I do not think I would be alive without the two of you feeding me and pushing to keep going. I’m also really really excited for you two to have babies for me to be Auntie Glimmer to, I’m already in my fairy godmother dress, so if you two could like…hurry up with that and maybe give me a girl in like…nine months I’d really love that, thank you. We love you guys.”

Marvel’s hand experimentally finds the small of Glimmer’s back, and she doesn’t flinch away. He grabs a champagne glass off a table and raises it infront of him. “To Cato. And To Clove.”

Glimmer interrupts with a smile on her face that juxtaposes the tears running over her cheeks “to Cato and Clove.”

When Cato turns his head to look at Clove, who’s curled into him, he notices the way her eyelashes are clumped and wet. “Are you crying?”

“Shut up.”  Clove warns, wiping at her eyes with the heel of her hand, before she more properly turns her body to fully lay against his side. 

Enobaria takes the moment, then, to stand up while the attention is still drawn all while drawing the attention away from Glimmer and Marvel, who seem to be heading towards the bar set-up together. She’s also clearly enjoyed her night, her jacket now unbuttoned (and missing the single button), the fashion tape underneath holding it closed, but more notable was the pink lipstick faintly visible along her neck and collarbones. 

“I..couldn’t pass up the opportunity to embarrass you.” She starts gesturing towards Clove. “As everyone here knows, I raised Clove. We can say I was a mentor to her, but in reality, I helped raise her. I met her when I was twelve, and she was two. Her mother was my mentor, and we all know that her mother is not here with us now. I only feel so inclined to do this, because of the fact her mother isn’t here to do so. I remember Clove as this tiny tiny toddler, about the same height as now. I remember the day her bitch of a grandmother dropped her off at my house to teach her how to throw knives. What she didn’t know until right now is I really had no idea, and actually had to ask Cashmere and Gloss how to teach her. But hey, clearly, I made her a victor anyway. And then… there was Cato. This little infuriating prick of a kid, who broke her clavicle the day they met. I knew he was going to be a pest in my life, ever since. They were the best partners though. They knew each others moves, their strengths, and their weaknesses. They were good and then when they were teeangers exactly how good of partners they were became all of our problem. Clove..she was traumatized. A dead teenage mother will do that to you. I was not worried about her…repeating…that statistic. Until fucking Cato Hadley won the games and came home a cocky Victo.  And then…I caught her sneaking out of his house the day he got home. I about killed her. I went home, and I called Cash, BEGGING her to help me figure out how to keep her from getting pregnant too. Cato, Clove, remember to thank Cashmere for all the years of risk free sex, later.” 

“Maybe she should also be thanking Cashmere for all the risk free sex, look at her right now?” Clove murmurs, and the shaking of Cato’s chest underneath her is all she needs to know he is holding back a laugh. 

“I was ready to kill Cato, because I was sure he was going to distract her from her last year of training. But to his credit, and I hate saying that, he pushed her harder than even I did. I remember telling him to back off, and when he didn’t, I was so hopeful Clove was going to get over him. Clearly..I had no such luck.” Enobaria gives a smile that is so soft without her filed teeth that it nearly does not look like her. “When she was in the games, and Cato and I went through the fear of losing her together…I decided he was okay. If she was going to pick one, at least he was a victor, too. And as much as I hate to say it..he loved her then, too. When they went into the quell..I knew they were not going to come out without each other. I wanted to kill them, and I do mean that literally, when I saw them covered in that blood and going into the cornucopia, but then…everything went to hell. I was in the dark about them the entire war. I did not know if they were alive, I did not know if they were dead, though I assumed that they were. I’ll never forget when one day, when she appeared on that stupid video and she looked..off. One of the worst moments of my life was when I heard her scream for him in the background of that video. Because I knew…I knew he was not there. I did not know if he was alive, but I did know that if he was, he was going to get to her and get her home. And he did. I cannot believe I am about to say this, but I am so happy to see you marry each other. I am also very glad it is now and not because you were seventeen year old teen parents. Above all else…I am so proud of you both. Cato…Clove..you are both my victors.” 

At the conclusion of her speech, Clove pushes herself up just in time to meet Enobaria half way as she leans across the little table to hug her. “Thank you, Enobaria.”

One of the biggest joys of their wedding is to watch their friends enjoy themselves. 

“Annie!” Clove grins, throwing her arms open to offer the redheaded woman a hug. “Thank you for making it, I  know it has to be hard with the–where is that baby of yours?”

“Oh, Glimmer has him.” Finnick explains, taking his turn to hug Clove as well. He nods his head to the corner of the room, where Glimmer is seated at a little table, gently rocking the three month old baby to sleep. “She also gave us the whole Aunt Glimmer Fairy godmother talk this morning.”

Glimmer is in fact swaying in her chair, clearly singing some song to the boy. The longing in her face is evident, even from across the room, from the way she offers her finger to the baby in her arms to how she holds his bronze covered head intentionally above the glitter of her dress so as to not irritate his baby skin. 

“I think she should just have one herself.” Annie remarks, leaning her head against Finnick’s chest. “I think she’s meant for it.”

“Yeah, well, she’s missing half that equation.” Cato recalls, pulling Clove’s back to his now entirely bare chest, his shirt having lost the rest of the buttons throughout the night. 

“I don’t think she will be for long.” Finnick suggests as Marvel settles himself in the seat directly next to Glimmer, reaching out to tickle the bottom of the baby’s pajama covered foot. Glimmer gives him a smile before redirecting her attention to the baby, but Marvel, oh Marvel never looks away from the expressions on Glimmer’s face.  

Johanna finds them as they’re sitting next to the cake, in their own little world, spooning bites of the confection into each other's mouths.

“Okay, Lovebirds, where are all the hot people for me to go home with?” She remarks, slamming herself down in a seat across from the two of them. 

“Nice to see you too, Jo.” Clove murmurs, wiping icing off the corner of her mouth gracefully. “I dunno, I bet Glimmer would be down.”

“Are you serious? Her and Marvel literally snuck off into your house fifteen minutes ago. I don’t want to get in bed with them.”  Johanna scoffs, shaking her head. “I thought Cato would have a hot brother or something here..”

“Wait Glimmer and Marvel did what?” Cato interrupts, holding up a hand to stop her from continuing with her subject change. “In our house?”

“Well, in Clovey Girl’s house I think. Marvel had a plate full of cake and a bottle of the good stuff in his hand too, like the kind of shit Haymitch used to hoard at the games…speaking of Haymitch! You didn’t even invite them? Miss Mockingjay I understand, but after all Peeta went through with us..” Johanna clicks her tongue disapprovingly. “Cold even for you two.”

“We did invite them, Johanna.” Cato defends, reaching behind them and getting another slice of cake for him and his wife– oh he could say it in public now— to share. 

“Katniss is still on District Twelve house arrest. Peeta didn’t want to come without her. He did make the cake though. That kid can bake.” Clove swipes her finger through the ivory icing, before dolloping it on Cato’s nose. “We tried.”

“Ugh, you two are so gross. I’m going back to the bar.” She pushes herself to a standing position, surveying the room before straightening her dress. “....congratulations, I guess.”

“Thanks, Johanna.” Cato calls as she walks away, before pulling Clove fully onto his lap. 

“We did it.” He teases her, pressing kisses along the juncture of her neck and shoulder, “You’re my wife, Clovey.”

“I’ve technically been your wife for years.” She turns so she faces him, her arm languidly draped over his shoulder. Clove strokes his cheek with her thumb, and flashes him a wicked grin. “Now it’s just public.” 

“Are we ever going to tell anyone we did this before?” Cato’s hands come to rest on her hips, squeezing, promising of what is to come later in the evening as he leans forward and once again starts kissing from her jaw down her neck. 

She lets out a delighted gasp at the feeling of his lips on her.  “Absolutely not. This is for them. That? That was for us.”

I gave my blood, sweat, and tears for this. 

It is worth saying that life blooms through the cracks of a broken nation, love takes root in the rubble and ash. It is life itself, it is love embodied, that is a true pioneer species rising like a  phoenix amongst ash riddled towns.

It is the passage of time that lets life and love flourish in the new panem. 

It is friends in District One. Marvel who remembers the way cold aches in the very core of Clove’s body, and always has extra blankets casually lying out for her to take without ever needing to ask.

On a beach in district four, It is Glimmer and Finnick, watching her blonde little girl and his bronze haired little boy playing along the shore, with no care in the world other than their mission to find whole sand dollars and laughing in delight as hermit crabs scurry across their toes. Two children who, along with their siblings and friends, are free. Their childlike innocence intact, their bodies forever their own. 

It is Johanna in District Seven, who finds that she had more in common with career victors than she thought. Or maybe, Cato and Marvel just make her feel like a fucking genius when it comes to women, and thats good enough for her. 

In District Twelve it is a baker and an ex-revolutionary, who are never quite expecting for literal career killers to show up to a tiny little bakery on the edge of the seam. They come looking for cinnamon rolls and maybe tease Peeta a little too much about the status of his relationship. Peeta never turns them away (even if Katniss does pretend not to be in the shop that day, sometimes).

And in District Two. 

It is in the combined efforts of Brutus and Enobaria, in establishing a recreation center for the surviving children of Two. It is far from the training empire it once was, let there be no mistake, but it gives a playground to the ghosts of the victors they once were. It serves as a memorial of sorts to the nearly one hundred and forty tributes who did not come home to District Two.

Cato and Clove, above all else, are happy. 

These days, Clove does not have much use for throwing knives. 

The ache in her body, the sharp pain in her wrists simply isn’t worth it anymore. 

Clove Kentwell Hadley still never misses, but she is so much more than a girl with perfect aim. 

Clove is the friend of the only surviving victors, she is the sister to the most affectionate Hadley she knows. 

They are Aunt Cove and Uncle Cayo to the identical little daughters of their best friends, who wrap their tiny arms around their necks and smother them in honey blonde curls and pure, unfiltered adoration. 

She is half of the best dinner parties– Clove makes the best food, but Glimmer plans the best parties. (It’s a bold statement to call them parties when it’s the four of them and the only other career victors, but Glimmer won’t have it any other way). 

And she is loved. So, so, so loved, by the only man she’s ever trusted, wanted, and needed. 

Clove is no longer just the girl who never misses. 

In fact, three years after the end of the war, the only time Cato finds Clove throwing a knife is in their kitchen. 

Her only goal? 

Trying to earn the brilliant, infectious laugh of their blue eyed, blonde haired infant son in her arms. 

This is the life of a victor. 

The end. 

[valentinaonthemoon]

fandom get to know me better meme

The lovely @cryingatships tagged me in this little game in April, so five months ago as well, thank you for thinking of me and for being patient for my answers!

3 ships you like: This is hard already. All the series I'm watching these days are about found families, so I don't really get into shipping if there's no need for a romance in the story. That said, based on the media I've consumed this year, three ships I like are: Katniss and Peeta (they complement each other so well and their story is very well told), Loid Forger and Yor Briar (i know it's technically a marriage of convenience for both parties, but they would make such a perfect duo and they're already great parents, too), and I guess all the TayNew ones, since I'm still obsessed (give me a PeteKao and a KaranAchi, but also give Tay and New other romcom series because their chemistry is perfect please and thank you).

first ship ever: it will have to be the incredibly toxic Marco/Eva from classic Roman fictional series I Cesaroni. You just have to eat that shit up when you're a tween, to be honest.

last song you heard: I've just finished listening to the album Humanoid by Tokio Hotel.

favorite childhood book: As a child I used to read a lot of Angelo Petrosino's Valentina series, and obviously Geronimo Stilton, but I can't remember what my favourite book was. As a tween, though, I remember two of my favourite books were: Una Cotta alla Vaniglia (original title: Cool, cooler, sechzehn!) by Thomas Brinx and Anja Kömmerling; and Occhio al Professore (original title: Achtung!!! Vranek sieht ganz harmlos aus!) by Christine Nöstlinger. I still have them around, maybe I should reread them to see if they stand the test of time. I will have to mention Oscar Wilde's short stories as well, like Miu did before me, though, for something in English.

currently reading: I'm trying to finish Paul McCartney's The Lyrics before the end of the year, but i'm also reading the manga Suzume.

currently watching: Peaceful Property on Wednesdays, Only Murders in the Building on Tuesdays, and I'm rewatching the first season of CBS Ghosts with my mum.

currently consuming: Just some water (stay hydrated, kids, etcetera)

currently craving: Dinner!!! It's way too soon, though.

Tagging, and you don't have to do this if you don't want to: @pollodigitale, @stitch-me-not, @thepondstogether.

Thank you again for the tag! Have a lovely day! <3

[heartsdefine]

↪ memes — accepting!

@mvndrvke said: save the theatrics. (effie to katniss)

        “I'm not being dramatic, Effie.” Katniss crosses her arms, clearly uncomfortable. “They wanted to wax me. Everywhere. I said no. The answer is still no.” Her legs and armpits already feel strange enough for how smooth they are.

[justanotherghostwriter]

Hello lovely! 9,10, and 14 for the ask game please :)

🤩 It's MJ! Hi! Thank you for being a gem, as always. (The ask meme in question, for reference.)

9. Tell us your favorite thing to drink when you write.

Tea! I'm not particularly fussy, honestly. It's 'whatever I feel like at the moment'. My go-to is Earl Grey, because I love it and it has enough caffeine to referee the two wolves inside of me ("I am very tired in multiple ways" and "I want to write"). But I currently own (pause to check) 33 different teas so it's a mixed bag.

10. Tell us your favorite thing to snack on when you write.

I really like a bowl of small things. In general, but especially when writing. Popcorn is a go-to (though pausing to then wipe the hand before the typing continues is a little disruptive to flow). Jelly Tots, Nestlé Smarties... that kind of vibe. If I'm splurging, then Cadbury Whispers/Tumbles or Woolworths Chuckles because shortbread or malt puff balls covered in chocolate is my heart's delight (outside of baked cheesecake, which is not conducive to writing).

A lot of the time, though, it's late enough that just water will do 😂.

14. What two fandoms would you write a crossover for?

Do you know that you spiraled me into crisis with this question? 😜 Because my knee-jerk answer was: "None. I'm not really into crossovers. The only one that ever caught my traction for a brief period was Top Gun: Maverick crossed with Mission Impossible. And that was a brief, interesting flirtation."

But I didn't want to answer that if I hadn't thought about it.

And now I'm wondering at the possibility of Katniss and Peeta meeting Ed, Al and Winry from FMA: Brotherhood. Just... I dunno. There's something almost potentially brewing in my brain...

But that's if I had to choose two. I'm much happier playing in one sandbox at a time. Unless, of course, it's, like, in the same universe like the MCU and we're just chucking people from different shows/movies that canonically exist in the same universe at each other.

[lilolilyr]

ANSWER MY RIDDLES SIXTEEN (or not lol pls only answer all of them if you want to)

5. something in fiction that reads like poetry

28. a book you wish you could read as a beginner again

42. a book that made you want to scream by the time you got to the end

43. a book that you have read more than three times

50. a book that made you cry a LOT

54. a book with the best opening line

55. a book with a satisfying ending

60. a book that you think about at 3 am

66. a book that fucked you up

70. your favourite poetry collection

74. your favourite love triangle

80. a book that reminds you of a loved one

90. the longest book you've read

99. a book with a strong female protagonist

119. your favourite summer read

131. tag somebody with whom you would want to buddy read a book

Ohhhhhhh Dayum that sure is an ask xD I’ll try my best adsfghjkl

Ask meme

5 Ok already the first one i go completely Blank on? Wtf reads like poetry?? What Does That Even Mean 🙈

28 as a beginner like as someone who hasn’t read any books yet?? Or for the first time? I wish I could read LotR for the first time again. I remember I’ve even read all the songs and long tree descriptions and everything because I was so in the story I couldn’t miss a single word, and I’ve skipped most of them every time since, and usually just watch the movies instead anyway lmao

42 scream in a good or bad way? Bad way so many Deutschunterricht Bücher. Homo Faber in particular.

Good way most of the discworld books recently!

43 & 50 Sara, die kleine Prinzessin <3 used to borrow it each time I was at the local library as a kid

Oh and also Isola by Isabel Abedi! It’s been a while and I don’t really remember the plot all that well but I remember reading it a lot. Maybe I should give it another re-read!

54 “The wind howled, lightning stabbed at the earth erratically, like an inefficient assassin” - Terry Pratchett: Wyrd Sisters

(Tbh it’s the only book I physically have on me atm and so the only first sentence I could check. But. I think it’s pretty good!)

55 If it hasn’t got a satisfying ending I don’t like itttt, honestly everything I’ve already answered could go here too…

60 the fucking house of night side stories haunt me

66 oh god oh fuck I don’t remember the name because halfway through I put it Behind the other books in my shelf in my childhood bedroom so I’d never have to look at it again but. It was about what if ‘ageing’ got a cure and everyone was basically suddenly immortal and obvs we don’t have the resources for that kind of population and wars and fucked up politics and killings and ghettos and oh my god

70 I actually tend to read poems either online and then it’s not a collection but more going through Google images of a particular author like K Le Guin, or checking out old poetry books from free book thingies where I maybe won’t like them all that much most of the time but they’re still kinda interesting? But couldn’t name a fav

74 love triangle or love angle? Poly 📐 from books I can’t think of anything canon or hc? And ‘love triangle’ ~oh who will she be end up with’ angles I just can’t stand. But most well written of these kinds of situations is definitely Panem because it’s not actually about the picking the boy but rather picking the kind of life Katniss wants to live

80 5 Freunde makes me think of my parents bc I have all their old books <3 and Lola makes me think of my sister because i used to read that series out loud for her

90 I know for sure I’ve read fanfics longer than any book I might’ve read!

99 hunger games. Oh, also anything from Trudi Canavan, especially the Age of the Five series. Many great women there and I love the witch best

119 what on earth is a summer read? XD but some other fav books of mine are

- Lies we Tell Ourselves by Robin Talley, an interracial lesbian story set in the US during the segregation

- Dracula by Bram Stoker. Seriously if you haven’t read it yet do so it’s amazing. I love seeing all the Dracula daily memes now, when I read it years ago most ppl just knew some movies that have nothing to do with the original plot and the original is great!

- Erebos by Ursula Poznanski. That one just… I couldn’t put it down, it’s so thrilling and good.

131 I’m not sure I’d want to buddy read a book with anyone because if Dracula daily taught me anything, then that I am incapable of reading on a schedule xD I really tried to re-read it with the emails. But nope. But theoretically, on a we‘d-probably-vibe-with-the-same-stories-&-enjoy-chatting-about-them kind of way, I’d have a bookclub with you and @lavendelhummel @squishmittenficfan @purlturtle @mimi-mindless @die-schwanenkoenigin @wellsbering :)

And if you guys liked these qs, the ask meme is here, if you reblog it I’ll send some your way!

Thx so much for the ask Ela! <3

[boybreaded]

ANSWERED

anonymous asked: Being taken to the Capitol after Katniss destroyed the arena [ meme ]

Part of Peeta, scratch that, all of Peeta still wanted to go back to Katniss. But the powers that be, also known as other tributes continuously vetoed it. And Peeta had long ago learned when to keep his mouth shut if it was displeasing to people. So he stopped asking, and stopped physically trying. He thought this all seemed wrong. A bad idea. There was no reason for him to be separated from Katniss. He was as useful here as he would be with her. His leg making him equally useless in both situations, mostly because of how weak he had gotten over the course of his time in the Quell, the little food, plus his heart stopping it all added up. Peeta wasn't used to the leg, and now it wasn't quite fitting over his stump correctly because he had lost weight, not to mention the water the wetness. He would love to be fully dry again one day. All of that surmounted to him not thinking it was necessary for him to be separated, and that he should have fought harder to stay with her.

It was all quickly lost though when he heard the explosion he only saw it later, not quite sure what to make of what was going on. No one was telling him anything, and he was being told to run, and so he did, even if he wanted to hide. He had always been good at hiding. The first games taught him that. But run he did, it was clumsy, and he was falling behind.

He slowed when he saw the Peacekeepers. And resignation rushed over him. Whatever had been going on... was still going on? Peeta didn't know. But whatever it was, this was the aftermath. And it didn't seem good. Were cameras still on, were the games over. He had no clue. And worse he felt like he was alone now. He looked around, and held his hands up, if this was his end let him show he was peaceful, compliant right?

But no shots were heard, in fact his hands were taken. Arrested. So he had done something wrong. It was a matter of time before he did. He just had to figure out what before the punishment really came. He had to know if he actually deserved it or not. It was like his mom was preparing him for this moment his entire life. You can never truly know the rules of your abusers when they switch them up on you at their whim.

Escorting him to a hovercraft, he limped on, a bit thankful to finally sit. His leg was in so much pain. The one that wasn't there. He was sure it was the phantom pains mixing in with the very real pain he was feeling on his stump. But he was still restrained so he couldn't relieve the pain. He just sat there, trying to keep his face neutral and not scrunch up as he want to groan about the pain his non-existent limb was in.

It was only him and peacekeepers on the hovercraft. No one else. He had to assume the best for them for his own peace of mind really. And being in custody of the Capitol, or Snow, he was suddenly very glad he knew nothing. It was almost like it was planned. It probably was. He knew he was the expendable one here. But at least now, due to his cluelessness he could buy whoever needed it time to do whatever they were planning. Right? Just speak honestly, and it would work out for him, just like it always did. Right?

He had been expecting to go to some prison, he supposes this could still very well be a prison, but the first place he was taken was what appeared to be a hospital of some sort. He should be familiar with hospitals, since he spent most of his time after his last games in one, until he went home. This felt different though. No one talked to him, and no one really even looked at him. It felt like he was a trophy taken out of a case ready for a polish to be handed off to someone to talk about and then put away again.

He let out a grunt of pain.

They took his leg. He should be grateful. It felt like a partial relief. It relieved his stump, not the other pain he was oh so desperately wanting to get rid of. That grunt of pain was the first noise he made since getting out of the arena. He doesn't know where they put his leg, but he feels very vulnerable now. He could crawl to get around, or hop, but it wasn't efficient. He didn't have many good thoughts about what was going on when he was first escorted by the Peacekeepers out of the arena. But now, without his leg, he felt very much like the prisoner he knew he now was. It through him off kilter in more ways than the literal one.

The lightened his hair before he was escorted out. Peeta had been partially familiar with the process. Portia had told him as they did it to him during the Victory Tour. Apparently, his hair had darkened too much and he would be unrecognizable. Portia had seemed sad as she talked about it. He couldn't really figure out why though. They led him, hair still damp from rinsing it, to what would soon be known to him as home.

A cell. All that was in it besides a bed, not even a toilet which seemed low for capitol standards, was a deck of cards. As soon as he was over the threshold they let go and closed the door. He hopped over to the bed and sat down. Fully registering at some point they changed his clothes. Had he passed out and didn't realize. Maybe. Anything seemed possible here. He wiggled the toes of his foot, registering it was bare. He was registering alot more now.

Maybe he had lost time. Living in a nightmare will do that to you.

[morfinwen]

For the ship meme: 7, 10, 14, & 29 for No Light, No Light; 3, 16, 19, & 20 for Eric's Song; 3, 15, 17, & 26 for If My Heart was a House; and 9, 11, 23, & 30 for whatever pair you would like to answer for. :) Thanks!

I don't mean to brag, but i answered this one in under three months!

7. What do they get up to on a night out?

I don’t imagine there’s much in the way of a “nightlife” in 12, but I can see them taking a lot of walks, out in the woods. There’s still a lot of area to explore (cautiously), but there’s also a lot of ground Katniss is familiar with, and Peeta’s always interested in hearing more about Katniss’ background.

10. What two songs, two books and two luxury items do they take to a desert island?

I’ll be honest, i got nothing.

14. When one has a cold, what does the other do?

They’re very tender, dedicated caretakers to each other when they’re sick. 

29. Why do they fall a little bit more in love?

For Katniss, it’s the little problems and idle comments throughout the day that Peeta remembers and acts on, without being asked or even having it discussed -- offering a massage that night when she’s got sore muscles, picking up a replacement utensil that’s wearing out, baking the type of roll she likes best for a special occasion. 

For Peeta, it’s the little things that make up Katniss -- the songs she sings during the day, the way she tackles the household chores, how she’ll come back from the market with some new cause or neighbor’s problem she intends to take on.

Eric’s Song/Zuko & Katara

3. Who is the most romantic?

Zuko. He’s got the formal education and the love of theater. Katara loves it, even when she thinks it’s ridiculous (especially when it’s ridiculous). She can be romantic too, but the SWT’s idea of romance isn’t the kind of thing that ends up in romance stories -- more practical and survival-focused than superfluous and flowery -- so it’s not as natural for her.

16. When the zombie apocalypse comes, how do they cope together?

Already answered here.

19. Where do they go on their first date?

Ooh, couple possibilities here. 

They sneak out in disguise, to avoid their security staff and the attention and scrutiny of the public. Zuko takes her to a small restaurant somewhere in Caldera City, a place that specializes in more than just Fire Nation cuisine so Katara’s taste buds don’t get burned off, and afterward they go to a good theatrical production. Finally they get dessert and go to a quiet park or scenic place and talk until it’s way past time for them to be in bed, and sneak back into the palace.

20. Where do they go on holiday?

Ember Island or the Southern Water Tribe -- a common thing in the z/k fandom, but for a reason. They see a lot of other places for work, mostly places in the Fire Nation but also other big cities in the world for diplomacy, trade negotiations, peace anniversary celebrations, etc. Ember Island is a place to retreat from their responsibilities for a little while, and the Southern Water Tribe is a second home.

If My Heart was a House/Chuck & Sarah

3. Who is the most romantic?

Chuck.

15. When they watch a film what do they choose and why? Who gets the final vote?

They watch a variety of things -- action films, comedies, sci-fi, fantasy -- but very rarely do they watch anything that’s outright bleak. Movies with dark or sad elements, yes, but not stuff without at least the potential for a happy ending, usually. There’s exceptions, but Chuck doesn’t like that kind of movie very much, and Sarah is mostly introduced to movies through watching them with Chuck, so she doesn’t develop a taste for them, either.

Sarah usually gets the final vote, since as mentioned above, between her childhood on the move and her career as a spy, there’s a lot she hasn’t watched while every film in Chuck’s library has been watched several times. Sometimes he’ll pick something that she “needs” to see or that he’s really in the mood for, but more often he’ll give her a couple choices, along with a summary of the plot or the kind of movie it is, and she makes the final selection.

17. When they find a time machine, where do they go?

I’m sure Chuck has ideas of where they should go. I don’t.

26. Why do they need to have a serious chat?

There’s a pretty huge discrepancy in their life experiences, in their childhoods and adult lives, so i imagine there’s going to be a learning curve for married life, especially once they have kids. Both of them have an idealized idea of the “white picket fence, 2.5 kids” lifestyle, considering their backgrounds, and when that idea conflicts with reality, they’re going to respond in different ways to it. 

Any pair (Avery/Anders)

9. What is the most embarrassing thing they have done in front of each other?

It is not uncommon for Avery to respond to Anders, assuming he's talking to/about her, only to learn he's talking to/about someone else; or worse, a stray cat he's been feeding. It's equally common for Anders to miss a joke or a reference, and get confused or angry or upset only to realize a moment later that it was just Avery’s sense of humor.

11. What do they hide from one another?

There's a lot Anders isn't comfortable sharing with Avery. Most of it is from his past, which is unhappy and he prefers not to remember it, let alone talk about it. Some of it is tied to things he's doing in the present, that he doesn't tell Avery for her own safety -- or because he's afraid she wouldn't approve.

Avery hides how much the weight of responsibility is crushing her from everyone, and while she lets Anders see more of it than most, she never wants him to know how responsible she feels for him. And she really doesn't want him to know how scared she is -- sometimes, not often but more than once, of him, not just for him.

23. Where is their favorite place to be together?

Her manor in Kirkwall, for a while at least. It's got happy and sad memories for both of them, but it's the safest place they know, and a lot of their relationship milestones happened there.

30. Why does it work (or not work) between them?

It works because in the end, Anders trusts Avery more than anything, even himself. It works because Avery never gives up on what matters to her, no matter how hard it gets or whether anyone else stands by her. And it works because they're both flawed, deeply hurting people who are dependent on each other to a degree that is at least concerning, if not outright unhealthy. But i'd like to think that after they flee Kirkwall, they find something adjacent to peace and sanity, and build a more healthy relationship.

Thanks for asking!

[saturnskyline]

Tag 9 people you want to get to know better

tagged by @braceletofteeth!! thanks bestieee 🤗🤗

i did this around a month ago, but i'm curious to see if anything has changed (i know some things definitely won't)

Three Ships

thought way too hard about this question even though it's not a final decision or anything lol. vegaspete is definitely there bc they are still wreaking havoc in my brain at all times :D monsam too, for changing the game and my life 🥲 and last but not least, winteam for becoming my new obsession due to their cathartic power. all quite different, but all very important to me <333

First Ever Ship

i'm still not completely sure, but going off of the previous answer, i did really ship katniss and peeta haha. not to be saying all of this in 2023... but i was team gale initially, until he basically got sidelined and then there wasn't really even a competition imo. and everlark really really grew on me! like i would be lying if i said "if it weren't for the baby" didn't have me in a chokehold bahaha

Last Song

psycho by mareux, from my vegaspete playlist (which is entirely too long but that's beside the point). it's mostly there for vibes, plus "psycho" is in the title, so there you go

Last Movie

had to think for a minute but when i remembered, all the horrors came flooding back 😭😭 i don't even want to say the name bc it's straight up embarrassing dfhsdfsh. suffice it to say that it was a bad jane austen adaptation that physically hurt me to watch :]

Currently Reading

a bunch of kp fics, since there so many talented and cool authors in the fandom! i go back and forth, but overall, it has weirdly helped me cope with all of the recent craziness. i've been reading a few lita fics as well, since i apparently can't get enough of those weather boys. dipping a toe in the rarepair pool of possibilities for both fandoms, which has actually been really fun

Currently Watching

between us (crying happy tears), gap (am woefully behind, sorry sapphics), and until we meet again (finally!!). i'm also in the middle of my kinnporsche rewatch, whenever i come back around to that. started rewatching don't say no the other day too for some reason, but i don't think i'm gonna be able to commit to the whole show for a second time lol

Currently Consuming

a ridiculous amount of ao3 and youtube fanworks/memes to boost my silly serotonin levels :)) mostly kp stuff, but i've been trying to branch out lately. expanding my resume of interests, as it were

Currently Craving

sigh... still one good movie kiss, unfortunately. that would probably involve me going out to meet people though, so maybe i'll stay on the yearning side of things for now 🫠🫠

Tagging

feel free to ignore if you've already been tagged or if you're not interested: @capikun @damnslippyplanet @hidden-joy @negrowhat @stardustvx @fandork @mcnonblackbeak @lesbianiconsteveharrington @davincsoo 💌

[nightwhispcrs]

@tragcdysewn asked ... ❛  can  i  come  with  you ?  ❜ korra and katniss

"if you really want to, i suppose i can't stop you," katniss shrugged as she forged ahead with urgency.

[moonmoonthecrabking]

alright so during covid learning last year all our teachers had to set up check-ins on google classroom (or zoom) to make sure we were actually learning. one of my teachers posed the question: Choose your fighter: Shrek vs Harry Potter vs Katniss Everdeen vs Percy Jackson.

I hope you aren't expecting a short answer because that is something I will not be able to give. This answer will be in two parts: who is the strongest culturally and who would win in a fight. There are two components to this answer, the maintaining cultural relevance of these four characters and their physical and strategic ability. These two elements cannot be combined to provide a conclusive answer, as their value in these ways are in separate spheres - those being within their own narratives and in The Economy. Cultural Percy Jackson is an amazing character of a wonderful series, but I think he has had the smallest impact. The PJO series hasn't had a major impact on children's literature, nor has it made a great impression upon the cultural consciousness. The fandom is still going strong, sure, but out of the four options available, it is the one least discussed and the one I heard about last. However, it is going through something of a renaissance, so this answer could change in a few years. I will concede that he is one of the most discussed characters online from his universe (unlike Katniss and Harry, but more on that later). It currently has 31682 fanfictions on AO3, and 79.2K on fanfiction.net. However, in the year since I have written this, the series has been on the rise, in large part due to the Disney+ adaptation and its author not being a transphobic twat. This thereby increases Percy's relevance as he is a beloved character in his fandom by children and adults alike. Katniss is the next weakest in terms of cultural impact. On the positive side (or negative, depending on how you look at it), The Hunger Games influenced many copycat writers, and bookstores had sections set aside for YA Dystopian. Katniss as a character certainly plays a role in this, as her courage and Kill-the-Government Energy is replicated (albeit poorly) in many other novels. However, where are the memes? The majority of Hunger Games memes are from the release of the Hunger Games and Catching Fire movies, in 2012 and 2013 respectively. Even then, a lot of them (too many) are comparing The Hunger Games to Twilight because something something feminism something something. Looking at current Hunger Games fanfiction statistics, the majority are based on the world building rather than the character herself. On fanfiction.net, the most popular form of Hunger Games content are SYOTs (submit your own tribute), rather than focusing on the characters themselves. The only reason why this content hasn't jumped ship onto AO3 is because of the site's rules. Even with her limited impact on the fanfictions based in her universe, the Hunger Games has 13033 fanfictions on AO3 and 46.1K on fanfiction.net.

@ultravioletmorning--light

[sherlollyandspoilers]

#18 for the OTP ask meme, and I'll let you choose the pairing too!

Okay, so I am going to answer this for a couple of my ships :)

18. What was the biggest hurdle in their relationship?

Spuhura (because I haven't thought about them in forever 😭 and I loved them in the new movies) - I think the first hurdle that they have to get over we see in the films, Spock believes that its part of his duty to further the Vulcan blood line....but I think another big hurdle for them is that they both are so stubborn, but in different ways, and this often leads to stand offs that Kirk just shakes his head at

Sherlolly - they are both very independent, so I could see this leading to them forgetting that they need to at least check in with the other so they can stay on the same page

Everlark - I think one of their biggest hurdles might be that Peeta is very outgoing and Katniss is more of an introvert and this can cause issues when planning free time together

[astralscrivener]

For the fic writer ask game, if you don’t mind two:

16. How many fic ideas are you nurturing right now? Share one of them?

And/or

18. Do you title your first before, during or after the writing process? How do you come up with titles?

hi!! thank u for the questions, i would LOVE to answer both of them !!!

16. how many fic ideas are you nurturing right now? share one of them?

i refuse to tally them up beforehand so i will just tease everything sitting on the backburner. some of these are active wips that are in progress on ao3, some haven't been posted but are being written, and some are still in the ideas stage or things i want to write

stealing our own place in the sun chapter 23 (7.04)

at skyfall chapter 9

oneshot sequel to bad luck charm (twist the knife again)

oneshot sequel to home sweet, no sweet home

oneshot sequel to missile on a mission (i'm a force that you will dread)

super secret project related to...something i wrote in 2017/2018

"fuck the blades, they ruined keith's mental health" type of oneshot inspired by that one pact katniss and gale had during the capitol invasion in mockingjay (the book)

a few other oneshot sequels to oneshots i posted in 2019 and 2020

abcs of klance oneshots for remaining prompts

18. Do you title your first before, during or after the writing process? How do you come up with titles?

it varies!! when i was first writing deceit so natural in 2017/2018, where people go to die didn't get a title until the very last chapter was posted. by contrast, stars go down (and also a midsummer night's meme in the squad up universe) both had titles before i started writing.

i know i find it easier to start writing if i have a title, probably because my wip then feels like more of a tangible thing / the title gives it a more unified mood and theme, but unfortunately most of my titling happens after everything gets written. a lot of times the titles are song lyrics - i've used lyrics from starset, written by wolves, and fall out boy, to name a few of the popular ones. chapter titles vary a little more. most of the time it's just bullshit pulled from the recesses of my mind that feels fitting, sometimes it's a line of text from the chapter itself (as is the case with at skyfall), other times they are yet again song lyrics

thank u for the ask!!!

get to know your fic writer!

[caesarflickermans]

@maidstew I know you will inevitably have experienced this as well, but unfortunately side characters are not focused on much by most fans. Caesar is no exception, and the list below is the extent that fans think about this character:

Stanley Tucci was sooo funny!! Haha funny man. (Sometimes) Oh wait, morbid I laugh with him, omg!

Nepo baby meme (very rarely) how does this affect number 4?

Question: What happened with Caesar after the war? Answers ranging from executed over imprisoned to (rarely) let go or (even more rarely) used by Paylor as an asset.

Question: How did Caesar feel about the Games? Answers ranging from bootlicker to opportunist to feeling sympathy for the tributes but not doing anything

aaaand that is it. Yup. That is all people think about Caesar regardless the platform or time.

This is reflected in most fanfiction published about him, as the majority of times he is tagged in any given work is because he interviews tributes. Rare are the works where people feature him mainly (41), and the majority of these are oneshots of character studies. There is a small sub-genre of fanfiction where he dates a tribute/victor (including reader fics), or where he is secretly from the Districts/was a past victor; he is no rebel there but being blackmailed by Snow—this is a common theme btw! The character studies usually like to make him more contemplative and perceive him as having sympathy for the tributes but not giving up his privilege—sometimes due to blackmail. Some like to write him as a bootlicker and being imprisoned-to-be-executed with two even having him buy victors for pleasure.

There is perhaps a handful of fan-made storylines for Caesar that are more complex. For example, someone had a series of beginner art on Deviantart where Caesar dates Effie.

Caesar being a secret rebel is not impossible to come up with. The reason why it is only me is simply because most people do not care enough about him to construct a major arc around him that's a bit more in-depth and a bit more out-of-the-ordinary.

I have kept up-to-date on the creative work surrounding Caesar for over ten years, which might sound like a lot, but if you were to search for it right now, I know you will spend half a day on what is out there and be finished. The majority of the oneshots are under 1K, the art is rare to begin with, and many of the ones out there have either been commissioned or requested by me, even if it isn't as visible—for example, the detailed art piece of Caesar contemplatively staring at a rose commissioned by a guy called raamsay? My old username & the artist misgendering me. Most anon requests on tumblr? Me not knowing the artist well and sending it in on anon.

I came up with this theory on Caesar becoming a rebel through major influences on aspects of guilt and complicity—what do you do if you grasp the horrors of your society and profession?—as well as being influenced by works like 1984 (Winston and O'Brien). Caesar is the only character we know of who has worked for decades in the Games industry, which can make him more complicit and more of an opportunist, or it makes him a sleeper agent for Plutarch, as Caesar is the only character to be close to the tributes and victors for such a long time span and who can easily influence the audience's perception of a tribute as well as communicate (rebel plans) with the victors on a steady basis. He asked Peeta about love and allowed Katniss to twirl her dress again during the 75th interview despite a past incident that was not beneficial to Snow/the regime.

Overall, it just bugs me when people go out of their way to hate on specific fan works. And this pet peeve applies to my theory as it has one person behind it (me) + the people I closely talk with and who I'd generally associate with my work one way or another ( @beedelia and @pollinarys ). I think that is simply very different from popular theories that don't have a single person behind them, such as the Foxface suicide theory, or are such massive works that they are within the fanon literary canon (the victor's project, the end of the world, peeta's games). That's punching up or into such a general direction that no one cares.

Maybe my perception of my work is fairly different to the fandom's—it has been featured in two popular tiktok rec lists—but even if that were the case, I also don't feel like I have within the fan work elaborated on Caesar at all. All the "this is why" is yet to come, which makes it fairly easy to reject the theory as the supporting arguments and the interesting effects on the character are yet to come.

To have a more productive finalising paragraph on this—and you surely know a thing or two about this as well—is that secondary and tertiary characters are not focused on much within the fandom. Which! Is! Sad! Most people's favourite characters are Johanna, Finnick, Peeta, Katniss, and Haymitch. While funny in nature, the "I liked Haymitch before SOTR" meme is cute, but ultimately he is one of the most popular characters out there. 90% of the fandom likes Haymitch, this isn't in any way unique. While I know all of the Caesar work out there, I have never been able to pinpoint the exact reason as to why that lack of interest in side characters is the case, especially when other works popular during THG that took place in magic Scotland have a plethora of hyperfocus on niche characters. I have my theories on why, but nothing ever felt conclusive.

y'know what kind of annoys me. if people pretend like the caesar is a rebel theory is some sort of popular theory. it's almost as if there's a pushback against it based on "all the theories he's a secret rebel" and it's rather strange because these comments create the false sense that there's a massive hoard of fans who like and speak about this theory (all while the counterpoints receive a lot of support)

but in truth it's literally just

🧍‍♀️<- me

and i just sorta. dislike this kind of false narrative. if you hate my theory, fine. but at least don't create some false story about the masses who support this while you are an underdog for speaking out

[fearitscelf]

“  i  bet  my  life  on  it!  ” / katniss

"Really?" Katniss wasn't sure how serious he was. "Would you really bet your life on something that's important to you to get your message across? Because it's one thing to say that and another to really through with it." She knew firsthand what it was like to believe in something so strongly that it meant potentially giving up her very life to get her message across. There was hesitation between herself and Peeta to eat those berries and a huge relief that swept over them after when they were spared from doing the unthinkable. "Or are you just all talk here? Because you're out of your mind for doing this."

meme ??? | @applesdrowned

[faeryworlds]

*•.¸♡ Musing: Lily L Potter: ❝ Wandering around aimlessly in the dark.❝   *•.¸♡  Musing: Victoire Weasley: ❝As beautiful as the bright moon.❝ *•.¸♡  Musing: Arya Stark: ❝Fear cuts deeper than swords. ❝  *•.¸♡  Musing: Gwen Stacy: ❝Fight for what matters to you, no matter what. ❝ *•.¸♡  Musing: Octavia Blake: ❝But you can’t save someone who’s already dead. ❝ *•.¸♡  Musing: Morgan Stark: ❝I love you 3000. ❝ *•.¸♡  Musing: Tris Prior: ❝I can’t be controlled. ❝ *•.¸♡  Musing: Katniss Everdeen: ❝ fire burns brighter in the dark ❝ *•.¸♡  Musing: Malia Tate: ❝I won’t judge❝ *•.¸♡ Musing: Luna Mikaelson: ❝I can take care of myself ❝

*•.¸♡ ❝GwenxPeter: I don’t always need saving. ❝

*•.¸♡ fierce but feisty (ooc)  ▎【FAERYWORLDS】 *•.¸♡ ( psa ) ❝Go up❝ ( Out of character ) ❝And Never Stop❝

*•.¸♡  Interactions 【FAERYWORLDS】 *•.¸♡  meme 【FAERYWORLDS】 *•.¸♡  answered 【FAERYWORLDS】 *•.¸♡  promo: 【FAERYWORLDS】 *•.¸♡  promo: other 【FAERYWORLDS】 *•.¸♡  wishlist 【FAERYWORLDS】

  *•.¸♡  ❝Visage: Liliana Mumy❝ *•.¸♡  ❝Visage: AnnaSophia Robb❝ *•.¸♡  ❝Visage: Maisie Williams❝ *•.¸♡  ❝Visage: Dove Cameron❝ *•.¸♡  ❝Visage: Marie Avgeropolous❝ *•.¸♡  ❝Visage: Olivia Steele-Falconer❝ *•.¸♡  ❝Visage: Lexi Rabe❝ *•.¸♡ ❝Visage: Hailee Steinfeld❝ *•.¸♡  ❝Visage: Shailene Woodley❝ *•.¸♡  ❝Visage: Jennifer Lawrence❝ *•.¸♡  ❝Visage: Jodelle Ferland❝ *•.¸♡  ❝Visage: Shelley Hennig❝ *•.¸♡  ❝Visage: Mackenzie Foy❝ *•.¸♡  ❝Visage: Lily Collins❝