LOVELY

~ BONUS ~

REASONING

• Journeying to District Two, Indiana and Cato barely felt the motion of the train as it glided along the track. Both of them were still dressed in the black fabrics of mourning, having buried Cashmere, Gloss and Marvel that morning.
• Seated across from each other, the pair of them were occupied by their own tasks. Indiana sketched the Academy, the way it had looked before the war whilst Cato had a book in hand.
• His mind was unable to focus on the words swimming before him. He needed to know. Choosing now to ask was the worst timing he's ever had but he's not sure he could work up the nerve to ask again.
• So, he placed down the book and called his wife's name. Her hand stilled and her blue eyes gazed up at him with such love. One hand rested on the small bump of her stomach. A reminder of the life they were creating together.
• Clearing his throat, Cato twisted the wedding band around his finger. Perhaps this conversation will end in me sleeping alone tonight, he pondered. Reminding himself that he wasn't lacking courage (even if his wife scared him), he spoke.
• "Why did you do it? Why did you vote yes?"
• Indiana looked away from him. He immediately began regretting his decision to ask. Now wasn't the time, and it's not the place. Opening his mouth to begin apologising, Cato was silenced when she sighed and started to explain. Tears glistened in her eyes.
• "Look, I may one day grow to regret that decision, and I live with the knowledge that I can never take it back. I will carry the guilt of those children's deaths for the rest of my life, but how could I say no to the opportunity for revenge? Cato, what happened to me there-."
• Her voice broke, and she took a large gulp of water before continuing. Indiana finally told Cato all that had happened to her. All that she had previously shared with Peeta, and Peeta alone was now knowledge to Cato.
• She told him about what she had done to her arms, she told him about the voices and being able to feel Marvel's arms around her as she cried. She told him all that happened during the sessions where Snow tortured her, right down to how the pain felt. All the feelings, all the thoughts, and all the times she had given up was finally spoken aloud.
• Teeth sinking into his knuckle to stop himself from screaming, Cato wished he could take back all the times he had wanted to be as close to her as Peeta had been. Cato had wanted to be there for Indiana in the ways that Peeta could be. Now, he felt horrid for ever having those thoughts. He wished he didn't know any of it. It was all too sick, but that was his wife across from him.
• "Snow might've been the one who gave the orders but those who hurt me chose to. They had control over their actions and they had a choice. They chose wrong. When I was given a choice, I chose the one that would cause pain. Maybe I chose wrong too but they deserve a taste of their own medicine."
• Cato disagreed. He didn't think hurting someone who hurt you made things better. Two wrongs, don't make a right. But, there were times he had been tempted to do such things. He had wanted to kill Peeta for killing Indiana. Heck, he had killed his own father because he had been the one responsible for Indiana whilst she was imprisoned in the Capitol.
• Cato didn't think killing children could ever fix the pain that had been done to them but he understood nevertheless. So, he reached over and held her hand tightly, promising that he would be there for her no matter how dark her thoughts got.