kill for your love - the hunger games

(077) to give them a martyr to fight for

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KILL FOR YOUR LOVE.

act three.

(chapter seventy-seven, to give them a martyr to fight for)

hospital ward / juniper and johanna's compartment, 75 ADD.

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"WHY DIDN'T YOU SAY anything?" 

"You really think I was in the right state of mind to say anything about it?" 

Lucy Stevens and Juniper Hale sat in an empty hospital room, just down the corridor from the observatory area. The latter was sitting on the edge of the clean, neatly made bed, a pile of dead skin pooling on the floor as she picked at her thumbs. The silhouettes of tears were stained on her cheeks. And then the former was sitting in the plastic chair across from her, near the door, hunched over. 

"You could have told Aurelius about it," Lucy told her, voice slight and weak. "He could have helped you... or you could have told Finnick." 

"I didn't want to." 

"Why not?" Lucy asked. "You're going through grief, it's normal—" 

"I am not going through grief," Juniper was sure to snap at her. "I am not mourning. I just didn't want to tell anybody." 

"Fine," the redhead whispered. "But you should have told me... even if you aren't mourning, which you obviously are. I might not have liked those two loons, but..."

Lucy's voice drifted off as Juniper heard her sniffle. She was unsure if the woman was crying or not. She probably was. Juniper tried to not think of Lucy Stevens crying as she continued picking at her skin. A stinging pain surrounded her fingers as she did.

"Is that what all of this has been about?" Lucy questioned. 

"What do you mean?" Juniper breathed. "All of what?" 

"Everything," Lucy mumbled. "How everything has been since you were rescued... this undeniable sadness that has consumed you... is this because you watched Nadine and Yara die?" 

"There hasn't been an undeniable sadness consuming me—" 

"But you are different—" 

"You know, captivity can do that to you." Juniper quickly nodded. Spots of blood were beginning to seep through as she ripped a slice of her skin off. It fell to the floor with the other pieces. 

Lucy took a deep breath before leaning back in her chair, straightening her spine as she said, "You need help... you need Aurelius... you can't keep this all bottled in..." 

Juniper ignored her. 

"You know what's funny?" Lucy forced a laugh that was mixed with tears as she ran a hand through her hair. "Everyone else knows what happened to the others... everyone knows what happened to Peeta, and Annie, and Johanna... but nobody knows what happened to you... you haven't told anybody—" 

"Because I don't want to." Juniper gritted her teeth. "I don't need to say anything about what happened." 

"You have to tell someone," the older Victor said. "Juniper, I know it's instinct to bottle things up, to not trust... but you have to tell someone. It will kill you, this."