The Girl On Fire | Hunger Games | Peeta (1)

Chapter 17

Right as the berries go into their mouth, a trumpet blares. And a frantic voice booms from above, "Stop! Stop! Ladies and Gentlemen, I give you the winners of the 74th Hunger Games! From District Twelve, Alessia Farehart and Peeta Mellark!"

Fireworks erupt, that fast, lighting the lake. Cannons thunder. Cameras suddenly descend on Alessia and Peeta. 

The ground beneath the Cornucopia opens up, swallowing those Mutts. The Mockingjays now sing. Now it's over.

Alessia and Peeta spit out the berries, shocked and thrilled. Peeta turns around facing her, "You're not dead?!" Alessia bursts into a huge smile, "I'm not dead!" Peeta realizes, "I'm not dead either!"

She throws her head back, laughing. They hug. They did it! He grabs her hand, and pulls her into the lake.

Back in District Twelve, Alessia's neighbors - 8,000 of them - cheering, crying. Even Corrina, a mother who had last her son to the Games before, is now able to smile, through tears.

Katniss and Gale hug excitedly, feeling relief and comfort that Ali is safe. They look at each other but then break the eye contact awkwardly. Mrs. Everdeen and Peeta's parents cry with relief and joy. This time Prim gives into it as well, so happy...

Resumed in the arena, Alessia and Peeta rinse out their mouths in the lake; then they're splashing each other, hugging. Alessia smiles with excitement, "I'm coming home, Katniss! I'm coming home!"

Laughing, splashing - utter joy and disbelief - unit; a whoosh sounds overhead. Two hovercrafts suddenly appear above them. A splash team dives out of one, landing in front of the two.

Peeta watches them, "What're they--" 

In seconds they've got him secured to a floating gurney. Alessia not sure what's going on, asks, "Peeta?"

Before Peeta can reply, the splash team leader signals the Hovercraft, and Peeta is whisked into the sky - gone - as a second splash team now zeros in on Alessia. It's a blur.

Then she's on a gurney too. What is all this??? She continues to yell, "Peeta?!"

Just like that, she's whisked up. Everything happening goes in a blur. Medical doctors and nurses run around putting shots and who knows what into Alessia. She just stares at the floor of the hovercraft as it flies back to the Capitol.

Days later... train wheels, flying down a track. Alessia sits in a dining car. Decompressing.

She looks like a girl again - but sobered, changed forever. She stares out a window at the bleakness outside. A memory hits her;

𝙔𝙚𝙨𝙩𝙚𝙧𝙙𝙖𝙮, 𝘼𝙡𝙚𝙨𝙨𝙞𝙖 𝙬𝙖𝙩𝙘𝙝𝙚𝙨 𝙛𝙧𝙤𝙢 𝙗𝙖𝙘𝙠𝙨𝙩𝙖𝙜𝙚 𝙖𝙨 𝙋𝙚𝙚𝙩𝙖 𝙞𝙨 𝙞𝙣𝙩𝙚𝙧𝙫𝙞𝙚𝙬𝙚𝙙 𝙗𝙮 𝘾𝙖𝙚𝙨𝙖𝙧 𝙁𝙡𝙞𝙘𝙠𝙚𝙧𝙢𝙖𝙣 𝙞𝙣 𝙛𝙧𝙤𝙣𝙩 𝙤𝙛 𝙖 𝙥𝙖𝙘𝙠𝙚𝙙 𝙝𝙤𝙪𝙨𝙚. 𝘽𝙞𝙜 𝙖𝙥𝙥𝙡𝙖𝙪𝙨𝙚.𝘼𝙡𝙚𝙨𝙨𝙞𝙖, 𝙞𝙣 𝙖 𝙨𝙞𝙢𝙥𝙡𝙚 𝙙𝙧𝙚𝙨𝙨, 𝙬𝙖𝙩𝙘𝙝𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙛𝙧𝙤𝙢 𝙗𝙚𝙝𝙞𝙣𝙙 𝙖 𝙘𝙪𝙧𝙩𝙖𝙞𝙣. 𝙄𝙣 𝙢𝙤𝙢𝙚𝙣𝙩𝙨, 𝙨𝙝𝙚'𝙡𝙡 𝙗𝙚 𝙘𝙖𝙡𝙡𝙚𝙙 𝙤𝙪𝙩 𝙩𝙤 𝙟𝙤𝙞𝙣 𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙢. 𝘽𝙪𝙩 𝙛𝙞𝙧𝙨𝙩, 𝙃𝙖𝙮𝙢𝙞𝙩𝙘𝙝 𝙖𝙥𝙥𝙧𝙤𝙖𝙘𝙝𝙚𝙨 𝙝𝙚𝙧, 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙡𝙚𝙖𝙣𝙨 𝙞𝙣, "𝙇𝙞𝙨𝙩𝙚𝙣 𝙩𝙤 𝙢𝙚. 𝙔𝙤𝙪𝙧 𝙞𝙣 𝙙𝙖𝙣𝙜𝙚𝙧..." 𝙄𝙩 𝙨𝙪𝙧𝙥𝙧𝙞𝙨𝙚𝙨 𝘼𝙡𝙚𝙨𝙨𝙞𝙖, 𝙞𝙩 𝙘𝙤𝙢𝙚𝙨 𝙤𝙪𝙩 𝙤𝙛 𝙣𝙤𝙬𝙝𝙚𝙧𝙚.