I feel like I need to re-clarify this:

Azaylan is 22 and won the 69th games at age 17.

~

The first step I took, images of the girl from twelve that I killed in the arena flashed in my head. The District Twelve quarters seemed to mock me as I imagined her bouncing around in here.

"Ah, there you are Azaylan," Haymitch says upon sight of me. I tried to smile, but I had a feeling he knew that something was wrong. I walked in rigidly, so carefully that my footsteps didn't even make a sound.

Haymtich told me to take a seat, that Cinna would be here soon.

"Isn't he…parade?"

"No, the parade hasn't started yet," he told me, and flicked his eyes up towards the avox standing there, waiting for me to order her. I only smiled and shook my head.

The elevator rose up quietly, and Cinna stepped out, looking rushed. Grinning, he lead me to the lounge, which was covered in clothes.

I stared at them wide eyed. Only now I had begun to wonder…

"Why are you doing this for me?" I asked quietly. Haymitch spun in surprise at the assurance and fulness in my voice. I looked at Cinna curiously. He smiled back.

"Because, you're kind. And…because my mother loved you."

"Y-You're mother?"

"Yes. I remember when you finished the victory tour. They asked you what hobby you would take up. And you sung. At the time my mother was sick, but she told me record it, and every Hunger Games when you would sing on Ceaser Flickerman's show, she would make me record it. She loved you."

That shocked me. I knew the capital had loved me for my voice and my brand of adorable innocence, but for some reason Cinna's sick mother meant a lot more.

"Plus," he grinned, "you need things that are more original. You're not a teenagers anymore. The childish things Mielé and Jordi give you? Terrible."

He loaded up the elevator with the boxes of clothes, and told me to go through all of them when I had a chance.

I jumped into the now squashed elevator, when he handed me a costume bag. "This is for your next performance. It's special," and I looked at him in surprise as the doors closed and the elevator dropped. As it did, the closest stack of boxes began to sway, and I tried to hold it up.

Four floors down, I reached Eight's quarters, and the elevator opened. Believing that it would not fall, I released the tower, and it leaned to the left, before falling on top of me and knocking me over.

I shrieked when I hit the ground, halfway out of the elevator.

"Azaylan?" I looked through my hair to see everyone staring back at me in surprise. I laughed nervously rolled to my knees.

"I'm fine!" I said, as Axel walked towards me. He reached down and gently took my hand. The skin he touched tingled with electricity, making me smile. I stood and kicked my shoes off on the floor.

"What's this?"

"Clothes."

"From?"

"Cinna. Dictrict twelves stylist. He's really nice! He told me his mother loved me so I-"

My voice cut off, my eyes went wide and I stared at the floor. Hanaberi, Celia, Woof and Larii came closer to me in surprise.

"I haven't heard you talk that much since your games," Hana said quietly. I turned away, blushing. "I'll help you with the boxes," Axel said, grabbing two. Woof helped as well, and eventually so did Hana and Celia. Believe it or not, even Larii grabbed one box.

"We should probably get back to the remake centre. The parade starts soon," Woof announced, before he and Hana got into the elevator with Larii and left.

I left the room silently and went into my own. The boxes were strewn across the floor. I grabbed the first one and opened it. The clothes on top were blue. I pulled the entire outfit out, and it made me smile.

I get what Cinna is trying to do now. I'm twenty-two. It's time to get rid of that silly, girly image. The costume looked to be made of some plastic looking material. I pull the top on. It only reached just past my chest, way above my belly button.

The left half of the top was dark blue, the other half, pale blue. The shorts were made of the same material and had the same colour scheme, but in reverse. The shorts covered my belly button, leaving skin exposed between the two.

"Hey are you ready to-" Axel walked in speaking, but stopped both actions at the door. I looked up at him in surprise. For a while he just stared at me.

"Does it … look bad?" I asked quietly. This seem to upset him.

"No! No of course not!" He exclaims with a chuckle, and strides towards me. I smiled at him in the mirror as he stood behind me. Next to Axel I looked so tiny. It almost made me feel truly innocent, like I had not killed anyone at all.

Watching him pick up a hair lackey from my dresser, I imagined how I would tell Axel that I loved him. If I could just blurt it out right now I would, except I can't even put one sentence together in the first place.

Gently, he pulled my dark auburn hair up into a ponytail. "Except, it would look better if you had all this hair off your face," he smiled, and tied it up.

He was right, you could actually see me now. I could only grin in the mirror at him.

It was like that for a while, until he slowly stopped smiling, and placed his arm around me from behind. It was almost lovingly.

I turned my head up to look at him. Excitement built up inside of me, and I stood on my tippy toes…so close.

My eyes flickered between his sparkling green eyes and his lips. Closer, we almost kissed.

"Hey, are you guys ready to g-" Celia walked in, and Axel's arm disappeared as quickly as I dropped into the seat at my desk.

"I didn't mean to interrupt, but we should probably go," Celia rushed with a red face, before leaving. I followed her silently, wishing I could be in that situation again.

Everyone had been surprised by my change, but no one more than the capitol citizens staring through the hole in the roof at us. I felt like I was on display, but then again, I always felt like that.

Whilst I watched district twelve's tributes light up on fire, I felt an arm wind itself around my bare waist. I began to turn with a smile, expecting Axel, but became shocked when I found it to be Raiden.

I gasped quietly and stepped out of his grasp in surprise. This seem to hurt him slightly, and he frowned. I glanced at Axel across the room, and he stared at the two of us like a hawk.

"Sorry, I was just saying hello," he said, before tapping his foot and blinking rapidly whilst hitting his head softly. He's being doing that since his games. It looks like he's trying to get water out of his ears.

"I-I've … I've … go," I turned away, but he grasped my wrist.

"No, don't."

I frowned down at his grip. It really hurt.

"Raiden, you're hurting me. Let go," I struggled out, trying to tug my arm away. He didn't budge, he just stared at me, until he began coming closer.

"Raiden," Axel's voice came, and Raiden released my wrist. I turned and ran to Axel, who pulled me to him quite hastily. I watched as Raiden glared at the floor, until Axel put his hand on the side of my head, turning my face to his chest and leading me away.

I didn't let go of his hand until we were in the elevator. Even then his arm didn't leave my back.

"That was so scary," I whispered, "Raiden…never like that."

Axel didn't say anything, but he lead me to my room and kissed my forehead with a 'goodnight'. I went to sleep, watching the dressing table and thinking of what would have happened, had Celia not interrupted.

~

I am running. She is in front of me.

Only small. Just twelve. From District 12.

It was her fault. All her fault. I wouldn't have killed Dane if it were not for her.

And so I chase her. A small girl with short blonde hair. L…Lucina. That was her name.

I watch myself barrel towards her like a maniac. I am screaming in rage, at her, at myself to stop. I can not reach out before my fifteen year old self grabs a fistful of blonde hair, pulling her down and throttling her violently, screaming incoherent abuse in her face.

I thrashed around, as I shook the girl like a rag doll. That is when I began bashing her head into the tree.

"Stop."

Blood.

"Stop!"

Brains.

"STOP!"

I screamed loud and long as I sat up in my bed, gripping my blankets tightly. My heart pumped fast as my hand automatically ripped four needles from my pillow case, cutting my hand open in the process.

"Stop it, stop it, stop it, stop it!" I scream, blocking my ears because I could still hear her head being crushed again the willow trunk.

I barely heard my door slide open.

Someone touched my arm. Was it her? Had Lucina come back for revenge?

With that thought in mind, I ripped my arm away from her grip and stabbed whatever of her I could with all four needles.

She didn't scream, there was just an almost silence. All I could hear was someone breathing. My own voice, whispering 'Stop it' and whimpering.

"Zay."

Axel's voice. Calm, quiet, comforting…close. I reach out, blink rapidly, and return to reality as best I could.

Beside me sat Axel in a plain white shirt and dark shorts. Both his hands held one of mine. My other hand was grasping my own hair violently, shaking with fear.

I studied him with wide, fearful eyes. I then noticed on, or perhaps in his large, muscled upper arm nestled my four needles.

"It's okay. You're here. You're safe," he comforted, before pulling me to him, my head resting on his shoulder, one shaking bleeding hand still holding my hair. Over his shoulder, the others watched from my doorway with sympathetic expressions.

Gently, Axel touched my hand, prompting it to release my now bloodied hair.

Leaning back, I look at him, tears streaming down my face. "You're safe," he repeated. "You are not in the games anymore."

I opened my mouth to speak, and looked at his arm with guilt. "I…I thought you were L-Lucin-na," I mumbled. A look of realisation crossed his face.

"I hurt you…I'm sorry," I cried wiping my eyes.

Axel turned to the door, and whatever he did then caused the others to leave.

"It's fine. As long are you're okay."

"But I'm not."