Fluid || Finnick Odair

2

Rio Van Oss lived in a society where everything was done by force. The Capitol forced everything upon the District, but the most prominently the rules. He'd been a good boy, Rio, all of his life, and he never thought that he would be dragged into the Justice Building by an army of Peacekeepers.

You never think it's going to be you, that's the problem. Rio knew that. He'd rejected every chance that he was going to be reaped, that he would never be torn from his life. That he would get to live to the age where he could have children of his own- maybe.

They locked him in a room, on his own. He didn't know what was going to happen. They never got told beforehand, and the media didn't cover it.

This would be his last chance at freedom. His last chance to live when the camera's were gone.

Then, the door opened, and the boys head snapped up. A peacekeeper had pushed it open, whatever grim expression he had was hidden by the white helmet they wore as uniform, but that was unnecessary to see. Instead, it was the people behind him that made him smile. Fjord and Coralie were stood there, holding onto their daughter, only momentarily, before racing in.

"Three minutes." The peacekeeper grunted before slamming the seaweed-coloured door.

"Oh, baby." Coralie gasped, pulling her son into her arms, beginning to sob into his shoulder. "My baby!"

"I'm not your baby anymore." Rio chuckled, sorrowfully, trying not to cry. He couldn't look weak. If they saw his red eyes, there would be speculation to how strong he was. He couldn't do that to himself, and he couldn't do that to his family.

"You're always going to be my baby."

"Our baby." Fjord added, keeping Nette on his hip. "And he's got a great chance at getting through this. Better than we did."

"I've got no chance, Dad." The black haired boy shook his head. He couldn't fool himself. "Don't get your hopes up."

"Oh, Rio."

They hugged for a short amount of time before the boy took his sister from his father, and balanced her on his hip. She wasn't going to remember him if anything happened. All she would have were stories, and if she was lucky, she would never have to see the replays of him getting slaughtered.

"I'm gonna miss you Onnie." Rio cooed, smoothing down her hair. "I'm really gonna miss you."

The door swung open, and the Peacekeepers came in. The Van Oss' didn't fight the process. The best thing they could do was get out of the way, so with a swift movement, Fjord took Onnie.

"We love you, Rio." His mother smiled, softly. "Don't forget that!"

     Rio had never been in a car before. For the seventeen years of his life, he watched from afar after every reaping, to see the new tributes being dragged off to their impending doom. Sometimes, they'd be seen in their home district again. It was rare, but it did happen.

     Rio hadn't been alive for three of the four victories that his District had celebrated. Mags, Tiber and Lir were all before his time, by quite some way. Finnick, however, was not.

    He had remembered vividly the sadness they'd all experienced when the man had been dragged away in that maroon motorcar, aged only fourteen. It was a tragedy when they happened to go so young. But, he also remembered the glee when he came back, in that very same car, and was driven to his new home in the Victor's village.