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𝐂𝐇𝐀𝐏𝐓𝐄𝐑 𝐓𝐖𝐄𝐍𝐓𝐘-𝐎𝐍𝐄

    𝐌𝐀𝐍𝐈𝐏𝐔𝐋𝐀𝐓𝐈𝐎𝐍 𝐂𝐀𝐍 𝐁𝐄 𝐀 deadly tool in most situations. It is considered to be an art, the way a person can single handedly twist someone's thought process or their beliefs to fit their own selfish needs. It is hard to master without someone seeing past your lies and bullshit, unless you were born with such a natural talent, then that is when you never know who to trust. A lot of the Capitol's government was skilled at this particular method, but it was rare to see it in a tribute. Especially if that tribute emerges a victor.

    No one was more talented at the art of manipulation than Deirdre Rowan was. From such a young age, Deirdre was good at getting everything and anything she wanted. Her parents weren't well off, but they weren't living in the Dread either, that's for sure. She was good at playing them against one another to benefit her own needs. By this, meaning buying things she knew they couldn't afford and instead of finding a way to get the money, forcing her parents to work hours on end in the factory and in the fields for an unhealthy amount of hours to pay it off, because there was no way she was going to work herself.

    At the time, Deirdre didn't care. They were her parents, they were supposed to provide for her and do everything they could to make her happy. It was their responsibility. When she saw a new dress or new shoes or even sweets she was craving, those were the things that would make her happy. Now despite the cruelty of her actions, Deirdre really did love her parents, even if she rarely showed it. They were her blood, she was obligated to love them. She wasn't good at it and after a certain age, never once hugged them again and the only time she hugged them was when they would finally cave and get her everything she wanted.

    When she was reaped for the 51st Hunger Games, she had been so angry with them when they came to see her before she left for the trains, blaming them for not protecting her from the pool of death. It didn't matter that they had zero control over the Reapings... in Deirdre's eyes, they were supposed to protect her and she was being forced to fight to the death and it had been their fault. They are her parents after all. They made the choice to bring her into this wretched world filled with loss and cruelty, not hers. She didn't ask to be here, to suffer for a war she wasn't even alive to be a part of. But she was because of her parents selfish actions and they failed to keep her safe. They were just as much to blame for her being reaped as the Captiol was.

    Just like it was their fault for not teaching her any survival skills, leaving her defenseless against those who actually have skills. It doesn't matter that she refused to listen to her father when he tried to teach her to make a fire or her mother who tried to show her the different kinds of poisonous plants and herbs. It was their fault for not enforcing it, for not pushing her. It was all their fault, not hers.

    She didn't know exactly how she was going to survive the Hunger Games until the Opening Ceremony. That is when she was able to get her first true look at her competition and not just from the screen of the other Reapings. And that is where she locked eyes on Lake for the first time. The male tribute from District 11. Extremely handsome and built like a boulder. It was almost impossible to believe he was only seventeen years old. He looked mid to late twenties at the most. When Deirdre's eyes landed on him, a plan was swift to form in her head. She knew her limits... she knew she did not have the physical strength to fight off the other tributes or hunt to stay alive, but he surely does. He definitely has the muscle for the first part, at least.

    Her plan was immediately set in motion right then and there. Her mentor, a hired Capitol citizen that was assigned to each District who had yet to have a victor win, which at the time was only 9 and 10, told her to steer clear of interacting with the other tributes just yet, but Deirdre, of course, was not one to take advice from anyone, always doing what she wanted.

    When the Opening Ceremony had ended, she had walked by District 11's team, just as they were about to leave for the elevators and 'accidentally' dropped her charm bracelet she had unlatched from her wrist early right in front of him. Just as she suspected, Lake had picked up the charm and raced after her, stopping her before she got on the elevator at the opposite side. All it took was an over-appreciative grin and a sweet timid voice thanking him profusely, giving him some made up sob story about how the bracelet belonged to her beloved grandmother before she sadly passed away when she was ten and Lake was flustered.

    Deirdre Rowan never knew any of her grandparents. She had stolen the charm bracelet from some girl she did not like because she was jealous and wanted it.

    She knew she had him by how mesmerized his eyes were when looking at her. She knew how beautiful she was. Deirdre was anything but modest. It was perfect. She had her muscle... but she also needed a hunter. And she didn't find him until the second day of training. The first day, she figured she'd focus on getting closer to Lake, but the second day she made sure to watch all of the tributes. That is when she found Oliver, the male tribute from District 6. Strawberry blonde hair, pale skin, and green eyes. He was much smaller than Lake, leaner and shorter in height. He was sixteen and less guarded- which made things easier. But she had noticed how skilled he was in the survival skills area.

    Her play? Well, she did what any woman does when she wants to use a man- she plays the damsel in distress. Knowing it would anger one of the male Careers, she took the one's staff when he had set it down, playing dumb thinking he was finished with it. When he had started screaming in her face as Oliver happened to be on the mat only a couple feet away, she broke out into a fit of tears, apologizing in a stuttering mess and ran away. Oliver, having a big heart, followed her. He was much easier to hook than Lake, as he had agreed to the three way alliance much quicker than Lake had, as the boy from 11 just thought it was going to be the two of them, but reluctantly agreed when Deirdre assured him that at the first chance, they will abandon him.

    It was the exact same thing she promised Oliver.

    Obviously, her plan worked wonderfully. Deirdre used and manipulated both boys and then managed to get them to turn on one another before killing one of them herself. It was talked about for years, how she used them for her own personal game. It is what she would say during the interviews when asked about it, saying that she did feel awful for what she had to do but in her own mind thought she didn't have a choice. When she returned home, she went from being popular with a ton of friends and guys admiring her to being hated and ridiculed. Her father had died of a heart attack two months after her games and soon after her Victory Tour, she was forced to sell her body to the highest bidder in the Capitol.

    Despite everything, she had agreed to it in order to save her mother. Because even though her mother wanted nothing to do with her anymore, completely disowning her, she still chose to sell her soul because she did love her mother, despite all she has done to her.

    Sage Rowan knew her mother inside and out. Deirdre used to go on rants when Sage was only three whenever she was missing her mother. It had been worse when Deirdre tried reconnecting with her, mainly because she wanted to dump Sage on her mother, but was turned away at the door. That is when Deirdre spilled her whole story in front of her three year old baby girl as she was playing with her food. Of course, Deirdre never expected for a three year old to understand her let alone remember. But Sage remembered every word... but it may have taken her a couple extra years to really understand what it all meant.

    Sage was familiar with manipulation. Her mother was an expert at it. Some would say it was even a talent. But Sage saw it as a curse, as she is almost a hundred percent certain it is the reason her mother started to lose her grip on reality. The guilt of what she did to her parents and what she did in the arena did something in her brain that triggered the hallucinations and mental breakdowns. It started some time after she had Sage, it only getting worse as time went on.

    What made it worse was when Deirdre discovered her mother was dead and no one bothered to tell her for two months. She had gotten extremely sick and just simply died. One day Deirdre saw someone new living in her old house one day and confronted them, that is when she learned the truth. Sage had just turned four years old.

    It is why as Sage sat in the same suite at the Tribute's Center for what felt like the hundredth time but was only the six year of mentoring- minus the year of her own games - watching the girl who has caused a lot of heads to turn from none other than District 12 kiss her very handsome young District partner in the cave- she could see the manipulation as clear as day. On both the boy and on the Capitol.

    Katniss Everdeen became the first ever volunteer from the lowest District in Panem. Similar to Sage's own personal Reaping, Katniss had volunteered in order to save someone she deeply cared for. But unlike Sage's year, it wasn't for her best friend. Katniss made the choice to save her twelve year old sister, Primrose. Sage had felt for both sisters when watching the Reapings. Everything was incredibly dramatic. There hasn't been a volunteer from an outlying District since Sage's games.

    Katniss became the one to beat, especially after she received the first highest score in the history of the games, with the score of eleven. Sage had been very curious about it, but her mentee's were both clueless at the time as to how the girl had managed to pull it off, saying that she kept to herself during training and rarely touched the physical stations. Not that Sage could blame her much for that.

    Everyone was able to witness first hand just how she managed to pull it off when Katniss finally got her hands on a bow, after taking them off Glimmer who had died from the tracker jacker stings when Katniss cut a nest down on top of the Careers. The girl was extremely gifted with the weapon. Sage had admired her eye, the way she is able to hunt and immediately set up snarls and traps. Everything she did was exactly how Sage would have done, but not better. Sage was older, more experienced and most likely has had worse hardships than Katniss Everdeen has. Sage forced herself to master everything she did so it would outshine everyone, and she did just that. But Katniss Everdeen could give her a run for her money... if Sage was having a bad day that is.

    Sage's own tributes were already dead, unfortunately. The girl, Isla Graham, was killed in the bloodbath by the boy from 1. And Matthias Kerr was killed the second day by the boy from 11, Thresh. Sage felt for Thresh, despite being a large brute, he hated killing, you could tell by the look on his face. It was pure instinct... and fear. Sage knew neither of her tributes stood a chance at winning. Both didn't know how to hunt, how to track. Neither had any special skills. Their training scores were very low and disappointing, nothing to pull any sponsors interest at the least. Sage gave both of them the best advice she could give and that was to stay hidden and try to do it as long as possible until everyone else is dead. Sadly, it did not work out in their favor.

    This is the six year Sage has been forced to mentor kids who do not stand a chance. It was made clear by President Snow himself that instead of alternating back and forth with Walker for being mentor, they will be giving Walker a break as he has had to mentor every single one for seven years because of her mother's selfishness. It was Sage's turn to do the same. It was only fair, as Snow had addressed it in a personal letter he wrote himself with his official Presidential stamp and everything.

    It was the first out of two punishments she had been given for all the mess she had caused during her own games. The protests in the Capitol after revealing to all of Panem she believes to be a product of an affair her mother had with a man in the Capitol. For exposing how she was kicked out of Victor's Village at eight years old and forced to become homeless for a little over a year. For causing some of his own people to question his actions and how he could allow that to happen to someone who is without a doubt one of them. Even if Sage Rowan will never, ever associate herself with the Capitol people. Ever.

    Despite the painfully long six years of watching every tribute she has mentored die,  this is the first game that has apparently caused the first uproar since her own. Katniss Everdeen was actually changing things... even if she didn't mean to, she was. Her volunteering for her sister was moving, but it was only the beginning.

    It mainly started with Rue, the sweet little girl from District 11 who had helped Katniss get away from the Careers by suggesting cutting down the tracker jackers nest and who nursed her after she passed out after being stung too many times herself. That is when the two formed an unlikely alliance, and Sage noticed the look in Katniss' eyes that was all too familiar to her. The look that said if it came down to it, she would die so this little girl could go home. Rue most likely reminded Katniss of her little sister. Same age, same innocence.

    Rue's death was heart breaking. Sage stared at the screen, teeth gritting forcefully in anger as she watched Katniss cling to her and sing to her, all while making a flower bed for her after the canon fired. A memorial. A proper send off. Watching Katniss break down- it took Sage back to her own arena, in that freezing snow, clinging to the body of the life she was supposed to save and desperately doing everything in her power to keep him breathing.

    Sage couldn't bear it. She had left her suite that day and went to the roof. Eyes are always on you, victor or not, but she needed to hit something. She needed an outlet. It was her escape. So she punched the steel door after it closed behind her. She punched it once, but she put a lot of weight behind it and all her emotions.

    The bandage over her knuckles was something she was getting used to. It has been several years since she needed to wear one, but she has probably broken every knuckle on her right hand by now. Her hand was sore and red, but surprisingly she didn't break anything. That just means she didn't go as hard as she knows she is capable of, for good reason. She couldn't explain another break to Tatyana or Bird. Or even Walker, though he wasn't here to suffer through mentoring anymore, she will most likely still have the redness on her hand by the time she returns home.

    Sage didn't find out about the riots in District 11 until the next day. Apparently, Rue's death and Katniss' defiance and respect was enough to spark something that hasn't happened in seventy-four years. The citizens of D11 had managed to do some serious damage, but the Peacekeepers had managed to put an end to it very quickly. She has no idea what the state of the District must be like now, but she knows for a fact that it is not good.

    Now as she sat in her suite, playing with her bandage on her hand and watching as Peeta talked Katniss out of getting the medicine he desperately needed at the cornucopia, provided by the Gamemakers as a way to lure the remaining tributes to one spot in order to put on an interesting show. Just like they announced that two victor's can be crowned if they both originate from the same District. That was a load of shit, but something Sage knew was all a ploy.

    Katniss had reluctantly agreed, but it was clear in those dark eyes that she was biding her time, most likely going to wait for him to fall asleep before going to get it. It's what Sage would have done.

    A wine glass suddenly appeared in front of her vision, causing the redhead to blink up, only to see a familiar brunette holding the glass with a smirk on her face. Sage let out an exaggerated sigh. "You know I don't drink."

    "I'm not an insensitive idiot. It's that weird juice you like so much," Johanna Mason points out, plopping down on the sofa right next to her, still holding out the glass with another one in her other hand.

    "And it's in a wine glass because...?"

    "Because I wanted wine and I was too lazy to grab a regular glass from the other cabinet." Johanna resorted, taking a quick sip before cringing as it went down. "Mmm, ugh. Shit, don't drink that!" Johanna immediately grabbed the glass from Sage's hand and replaced it with the one she had. "I think I might be a bit drunker than I thought."

    Sage chuckled in amusement. "You are a lightweight."

    "Ugh, that shit is gross. How do you even drink it?"

    Sage frowned at her glass. "It's just grape juice."

    "It's awful." Johanna stated, taking a larger sip of her wine before settling back down. "What did I miss?"

    "Just more mushy gushy crap between the two lovebirds. Katniss is really terrible at this."

     "You really think she's faking it?"

     "Of course. The boy may have started it by announcing his crush during the interviews, but it was all strategy. To get her to look more desirable and for people to feel sorry for him. His statement may have been true because it is clear as day he truly does have feelings for her, but it was all a ploy. Plus, she clearly does not reciprocate." Sage explained thoroughly, taking another sip of her juice and watched as the camera focused on the remaining Careers, which is only Clove and Cato. Thresh is on his own and Selene, the little redhead girl from D5 is still running around doing her own thing. Sage has been very impressed with her so far. Hasn't made a single kill and has evaded everyone who crosses paths with her. She was fast, but she was mostly good at staying hidden, like Sage had told her two tributes to do.

    Johanna hummed while taking another sip, looking around the room, her expression twisting into confusion. "How long was I gone? Where did everyone go?"

    "Tatyana received a call from that secret boyfriend she's been seeing and Kressner came to get Bird so they could make it to their appointment."

    Johanna settled back down, pushing her feet underneath her legs and shook out her shoulder length hair. "I still can't believe Bird Winders is going to be a mother in less than three months."

    Sage chuckled deeply. Neither could she. She feels like it was just yesterday when she discovered her escort was even married. And after her conversation with Walker at the President's Mansion during her tour, she tried to be more civil with the woman. It was extremely hard, because the woman really did like to get under her skin. Bird Winders was warped into the Capitol's beliefs and their way of life. She believes in President Snow and everything he does. She believes in the games and that the Districts need to be punished for a war that happened long before they were even born. It was hard for Sage to get past that, but she has managed to call a truce with the extreme woman. She had no choice.

    The two were much more civil now, but sometimes Sage needed a break from her. Surprisingly enough, Sage actually gets along better with Bird's husband, Kressner Higginbottom. He was a very quiet, very recluse man and much older than Bird was, by ten years.

    He was also extremely wealthy. Sage will admit, upon meeting him, she made a snap judgment in believing Bird only married him for his money. But that couldn't be farther from the truth. The two met at some holiday function and he was immediately smitten with the gorgeous woman. Bird actually had turned him down for a dance, knowing well who he was, which started the pursuit. Kressner fell in love with Bird because she had turned him down, not caring who he was or how much money he had.

    Well, long story short, Bird gave the man a chance after he helped her home one night when she was drunk and fell in love with him because of how much he can make her laugh and smile and just how good he treats her with small gestures, like hand picked flowers or teaching himself to make these weird taffies that she loves from scratch all by himself.

    Sage never once saw anything other than genuine love between the two and that is why she was actually happy for them to be able to start a family together.

    "Well, this is boring." Johanna announces, referring to the games as most of the tributes were settling in for the night. "I'm hungry. Let's go get dinner."

    Sage groaned. "I was really hoping to just stay in tonight."

    "No, you were hoping to avoid running into you-know-who. But I'm starving and I want to stretch my legs." Johanna got up, turning off the television screen and tossing the remote onto the couch, facing the redhead.

    "I'm not the one doing the avoiding." Sage grumbled bitterly under her breath.

    "And I'm too hungry to care at this moment." Johanna stated, crossing her arms and arching a brow. "Don't make me drag you."

    Sage scoffed. "Good luck with that."

    Johanna groaned, knowing for a fact that she wouldn't win that fight. "Please, Sage! I don't want to go alone. You are the only one who is somewhat tolerable."

    Rolling her eyes, Sage set down her juice. "Fine. But you're buying."

    "Yeah, yeah. Whatever. Just get your ass up and let's go!" She ordered impatiently. Sage just sighed and did as she was told, already missing the comfort of the sofa the moment she was on her feet.

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    𝐅𝐎𝐑 𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐅𝐈𝐑𝐒𝐓 𝐓𝐈𝐌𝐄 in the history of the Hunger Games, two survivors emerged out of the arena alive.

    Two victors, both from the same District, managed to do the impossible. Rules were broken and President Snow was made to look like a fool... all because of an act of true love. Or what everyone believes to be true love.

    The Capitol broke into chaos, past victors watched and almost admire in a shocked like state, as Katniss Everdeen gives the biggest 'fuck you' to the Capitol and the games by refusing to kill 'the love of her life'. As Sage ultimately predicted, the rule change for two victors of the same District to be able to emerge victorious had been revoked. It was a sham, a way to give them hope only to snatch it away from them at the last moment.

    Katniss Everdeen and Peeta Mellark stood as the final two in the arena, expecting to both walk out of there, only to have that dream snatched from them as quickly as it was given. Just when Peeta was willing to sacrifice himself for Katniss, the latter chose a different approach. In an act that shocked the nation, Katniss pulled out the poisonous berries she was saving, both taking a handful each. In the eyes of the Districts and Capitol, this was their Romeo and Juliet moment. One will not live without the other. They would rather die than to live without one another. It was a desperate act of love and fate. It was beautiful... and it was terrifying at the same time.

    But in the eyes of those who could see past the bullshit... the eyes of those who knew their love was a lie; a ploy for the cameras and to keep themselves alive, knew this was an act of rebellion. Katniss Everdeen knew the Capitol needed their victor. She knew there had not been a game where a victor did not emerge out of the games. Where the audience did not have someone to cheer or root for. Not since the games became televised. Not since they started making it one big show. It was a gamble... one that could have easily gone horribly wrong for both of them.

    What Katniss Everdeen, the unpredictable girl on fire, did in that arena was more of an act of defiance. It was pure manipulation. She just manipulated the Capitol and the Gamemakers into forcing them to crown two victors instead of one. Katniss twisted their hand... how the hell either one of them was still alive was a damn miracle in Sage's eyes. She is surprised Snow didn't give the order to blow them both to bits right there and then.

    However, the star-crossed lovers both being crowned winners have caused ratings to go through the roof and the reactions to be more emotional. In the audience's eyes, the Gamemakers had mercy by allowing them both to live. It was wonderful. It was different. It was unexpected. True love was their selling point and there was no way out of it now. Their fake love saved their lives. Now they must continue that love for now and eternity if they want to keep themselves and their loved ones alive.

    Sage was currently getting ready for the trip back home. Mentors of the fallen tributes don't normally stay once a new victor is crowned. Most of them chose to return home pretty quickly after they were announced. But Sage stayed back for a bit, mainly because she was trying and failing to find the piece of shit who is the only person she wanted to talk to about the events in the games. The idiot who has been dodging her this entire time they've been to the Capitol.

    Six years ago, Sage Rowan never anticipated her life was going to change so drastically like it has. She never imagined she would actually follow in her mother's footsteps and become a victor herself. One second, she was a poor girl hated by everyone because of her last name and isolating herself from everyone, just the way she liked it. The next, she was a rising sensation with her own personal title and fan club. She went from being a lonely orphan to finding a family in the most unlikely places.

    Never had she thought she would care for anyone ever in her life. She had cared for Hyacinth, but she always convinced herself it was more of a mutual agreement, as the only reason the older woman had taken her in was because she was sick and knew she would no longer be able to get around on her own. And despite the hovel Hyacinth lived in, Sage needed a roof over her head. It was better than on the streets. She didn't realize how much the older woman meant to her until she thought she was never going to see her again.

    Things are much different now. Six years was a long time... time to form special bonds and actually make some friends. Actual friends. If anyone would have told eight year old Sage that she would one day have people in her life to call something as trivial as her friends, she would have laughed in their faces. It was such an impossible thing to think about at the time, but now she can't imagine not having them in her life.

    Johanna Mason was a new one. She won her games three years ago during the 71st Hunger Games. Her own game play was a choice of manipulation, but something that was less disgraceful and less cruel. Johanna put on a persona that she was a weak, fragile little girl. She played it during training and during her interviews. Her score wasn't entirely too weak, but it was only a six. She definitely downplayed her individual assessment. Because the girl who entered the arena wasn't that weakling she made everyone else believe she was. She was a fierce fighter and once she got her hands on an ax, she was unstoppable. District 7, Lumber. The choice of weapon was common for tributes from her District.

    Sage was... impressed. Not because she was playing everyone like a fool, Sage had a suspicion but wasn't a hundred percent sure. She was impressed by her skills and that rarely happens, especially since Sage never really cared enough about tributes who weren't her own mentee's. But Johanna has surprised everyone and Sage wasn't surprised at all when she won.

    Their friendship was an odd one. The first time Sage met Johanna was during her Victory Tour when she came to D9 and Sage called the new victor out for quoting an old poet incorrectly as she was trying to sound smart. Johanna had glared at her, surprised that she even knew that poem. Someone stupidly joked that a fight between them would be a sight to see, something worth betting on. Johanna had challenged Sage to a silly arm wrestling contest. Sage had never even heard of such a thing and had attempted to decline, but all it took was for the newest victor to call her a coward and Sage was demanding for the rules.

    Many took bets and Walker hadn't even tried to stop her like she had expected him to, but instead placed his own bet. The tedious match lasted a good three minutes, longer than anyone expected. The two girls were a force to be reckoned with. Sage, of course, won and Walker went home a few bucks richer. From then on, the two were always challenging each other, but somehow managed to become friends. How that happened was kind of a mystery... they just bonded with their hate for people and love for those they cared for.

    Sage had befriended a few other victors, but Johanna was one out of two of the one's she felt the most comfortable around outside her team. The other one, the one who is making her blood boil beneath her skin because he has been avoiding her the entire time they've been at this damn Tribute Center. She has made many attempts to speak to him but the bastard was really good at dodging her. Their only interaction was at the Tribute Parade and it had been brief. That is when Sage sensed something was off.

    Finnick Odair was not someone she ever expected to call a friend. The pretty boy victor from District 4, youngest ever to win the Hunger Games. He was flirtatious and cunning and a bit egotistical. He was also arrogant and a bit self-absorbed. Of course, just like many victors, it was all a front they gave to please the Capitol. It was how people saw him, a pretty face who can fight, nothing more.

     Sage learned quickly that he was more than that. Those were just the assumptions she made from watching him on a screen. But meeting him was a completely different story. It was mostly all a front. The Finnick Odair that Sage met was someone who helped her out of a serious panic attack when she had no idea what was happening to her. He was someone who broke the rules and helped her leave the dinner party at D4 so she could go find the Ellison family. He was someone who admitted straight forward that he tries to take care of the families of every fallen tribute in anyway he can without causing too much trouble for them or himself.

    Over the years, the two just became friends. Whenever they were forced to do press tours or forced back to the Capitol every year for mentoring as Finnick had been the main mentor since Mags wasn't able to do it anymore, they always just seemed to be in each other's presence and soon they seemed to only be able to tolerate each other. Sage had thought she reached her limit when it came to people in her tight knit circle, but Finnick was an unexpected exception. It was easy with him...  she could never really explain it. He was just much easier to talk to than her team or even Adrian.

    It took Sage a while to understand it was because they were both survivors suffering the same trauma, forced to put up these fake persona to please the sick, twisted minds of the Capitol people. She knew there were other's, but before Johanna came along, it was really just her and Finnick to keep each other sane, mentoring for a few years. The bond formed slowly, but also fiercely.

    It was rare for Sage to feel so content with someone like this. It's only happened a few times but it had taken her a long time to allow any of them in truly. And now she was afraid she may have ruined probably one of the most important relationships in her life... and she has absolutely no idea what she did to deserve his cold shoulder.

    One of the biggest things just happened in the history of the games and the first person Sage sought out was Finnick. Not Tatyana, not Johanna. Finnick. Because she knew he would have a lot more to say about it than anyone else. That he will listen to her conspiracy theories on what will happen as a result of all of this. Finnick would listen to her go on and on about how she will predict things going down, which she is usually always right about and never once gets annoyed with her about it or her never ending wheel of thoughts. For so long, she has never had anyone to talk to about this who would really listen. Even with Adrian and the others, she never felt comfortable going into a twenty minute rant where she predicted the outcome of actions caused in the Hunger Games.

    Not until Finnick.

    And the bastard was avoiding her.

    She knew it was a long shot, but she needed to speak to him. She needed to know what she did to warrant this uncharacteristic behavior. She hates how much she was worried about this. Six years ago, she would have brushed this off like it was nothing, not giving a crap what he thought of her or if she had done something to upset him. But the problem is... she is no longer the same girl she was six years ago. She is not a fifteen year old girl anymore. She's a twenty-one, about to turn twenty-two, adult woman. She has matured and grown in more ways than one. She actually cares now that she has people who want to be in her life, as annoying as that is.

    She just needs to see him.

    So Sage took the elevator to the roof for one final check. It was their spot... the spot they meet up almost every day at midnight since they were forced to be here. Finnick brought her there after her first year of mentoring when she lost her first tribute. A thirteen year old boy named Brick. Sweet boy, so young and innocent. His death was quick, thank goodness, but it had hit Sage harder than she thought it would. Finnick had seen her rush off as they were in the square when he had died and chased after her. He basically had to drag her with him and then once they got up there, he told her to hit him. To let her anger out. He knew she needed an outlet when she was angry or upset and since they didn't have a sack of grain or a punching bag, he volunteered to take the hit.

    Finnick never volunteered to take the hit again, despite how much better she felt.

    No one ever came up here. Not since they've been coming up here. If they do, it's always at different times. But the roof will always be their spot. This is where Sagr had been her most vulnerable since her own games. This is where their friendship truly began. They've shared secrets, laughs and angry rants with others here. It was their secluded escape, as they made sure there were zero cameras or microphones hidden anywhere. Even though they were pretty positive they weren't, they would find other ways to speak when they feared they were being watched.

    She arrived at the highest level before having to take the stairs through the roof access, climbing up the fifteen steps with ease and pushing the door open. "Finnick?" Sage called out hopefully.

    The sun was just rising on the new day, her long hair being blown back by the light breeze. Sage walked around, though there weren't many places to hide. Once she surveyed the entire area, she felt her shoulders slump and her anger turn to despair.

    Of course this is happening. Something she feared from the very beginning when she suddenly found herself opening up. She somehow managed to screw it up. Just like her mother always told her she would. And the worst part about this is, she has no idea how she did it. Though she isn't really surprised. Screw him. Whatever he thinks she did, it is probably for the best.

    Then why does it feel like her heart was shattering into a million tiny little pieces at the thought of losing him?

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Sorry? This was harder to write mainly because I always feel like the first chapters to every new part is hard to write for me for some reason.

I know this chapter wasn't that productive, but I basically wanted to give you guys a sneak peek into Sage's life but mainly her reaction to Katniss' games.

As for the whole Finnick thing, I PROMISE YOU WILL GET INTERACTION IN THE NEXT CHAPTERS! Prepare for lots of flashbacks of the two, and I mean a LOT. It's been six years guys, you will get flashbacks. You will get your Finnick and Sage content and it is sooooo worth it. You will learn very, very soon what Finnick's deal is. Don't worry, all will be explained!

Hope this wasn't to boring for ya'll! Thank you for all for all the votes and comments! I live for both and they mean so much! You rock!