Though now she lived in the districts, she was capitol born. She knew all of his hardships and never looked at him any differently. She handled him with such gentleness, and kindness. She was a rare bird, His Nightingale. Just like he had been for h...
A\N: Again. Thank you so much for reading. It's really been fun writing and rewriting. I try really hard to make sure everything is perfect for you all...❄️❄️❄️
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Coriolanus left the Academy in a state of agitation, but once again the rush of attention quieted his distress. From his fellow students in the hallway, from Tigris and the Grandma'am as they ate a quick supper of fried eggs and cabbage soup, from random strangers as he made his way back to the zoo that evening, eager to keep his head in the Games.
A soft warm orange glow of the sunset cloaked the city, and a cool breeze swept away the suffocating heat of earlier that day. Officials had extended the zoo's hours until nine o'clock, allowing the citizens to see the tributes, but there had been no more live coverage since his earlier visit. Coriolanus had decided to make another appearance to check on Juniper. After Dean Highbottoms plain and blunt threat, he worried even more for his June. He didn't want to be away for too long, in fear of her disappearing when he wasn't around to protect her.
As he walked through the paths of the zoo, he was filled with nostalgia for the pleasant days he'd spent there as a child, he could almost so vividly see him and Juniper, wide eyed, running around hand and hand so fascinated by the animals. But now he felt nothing but saddened by the emptiness of the cages. They had once been full of fascinating creatures from the Capitol's genetic ark. Now, in one, a lone tortoise lay in the mud, wheezing. A toucan squawked high in the branches, fluttering freely from one enclosure to the next. They were rare survivors of the war, as most animals had died due to starvation or been eaten. A pair of scrawny raccoons that had likely wandered in from the adjacent city park dug in a fallen trash can. The only beasts thriving were the rats that chased one another around the edges of fountains and scurried across the path mere feet away.
As Coriolanus neared the monkey house, the paths became more crowded, groups of about a hundred people or so curved from one side of the bars to the other. Someone jostled his arm as they sped by, and he recognized Lepidus Malmsey pushing ahead through the visitors with the cameraman. A sort of commotion was occurring down front, and he climbed up on a boulder to get a better view.
To his surprise, he saw Sejanus standing at the edge of the cage with a large backpack in hand. He held what appeared to be a sandwich through the bars, offering it to the tributes inside. For the moment, they were all hanging back. Coriolanus could not hear his words, but he seemed to be trying to coax Dill, the girl from District 11, to take it. What was he up to? Was he trying to one up him and steal the day's thunder? To take his idea of coming to the zoo and then dress it up in a way Coriolanus could never compete with, because he didn't have the money too? Was that whole bag filled with sandwiches? The girl from 11 wasn't even his tribute.
When Sejanus noticed Coriolanus arrival, his face brightened and he waved him over. Casually, Coriolanus made his way through the crowd, soaking up their attention.
