Shark Plushy (Enobaria X F.OC)

District 8 II

Gut punch.

That is all.

Bera didn't feel such a pain no matter the situation she was in as seeing the vast landscape of destruction while looking out the window of the hovercraft.

A hand against the glass as she watched in silence the concrete graveyard that span to the horizon.

She knew she did good talking Cecelia down from coming. Despite being a victor this woman is fragile, she could never survive the war to come and Bera is not putting her through that.

She didn't care for the film crew introducing themselves, they need to be happy she even remembers they need and then to deal with her silence. Why must they try to speak to her?

They hadn't taken Finnick nor Johanna either, not Haymitch but somehow Garlic was important enough to come... But the other victors stayed because either because of their state of mind, Bera hiding they were going to 8 or because if the beloved and the mockingjay died to still have victors to fight for them.

She scoffed... What did they expect? Haymitch is like 50 with Beetee and they are more strategic brains so no fighting, Bera and Finnick are like 24, Johanna around.... 21? 22? and their damned gems are 17 if not younger. Their damned mockingjay is a fucking fight while adult sit back in safety.

It makes her blood boil, Snow and Coin? Same person, different body. Both control maniac, using children as their pawns for domination.

Seeing this, it seemed she doesn't have a choice, like how she protected them from snow, she'll need to protect them from Coin too.

As much as she doesn't like Potato for quite petty things, she is a damned child in their world of grown up. Bera has stood up to it since she won. Bera was more loved so they left Finnick alone mostly, Bera was more popular for they ignored Johanna's outbursts, Bera was more charismatic so they didn't realize Woof's lost mind, Bera was charming so they left Cashmere alone.

And Snow despises her more then her does Katniss... She just needs to make sure the mockingjay is completely forgotten as it seems no one else will stand up to protect this girl... This child.

No one but another of these children.

-------------------------------------------------

Landing in the rubble was even worse then she could have believed.

A vice was squeezing her chest... Or were those her organs imitating her brain and trying to squeeze out of the wound after she got out of the arena?

"This is commander Paylor, leader of the rebels in district 8." A haggard but strong woman came to meet them. "She wanted to see your injured, maybe give some hope back." Boggs said to her as she showed her Katniss.

"Oh we have injured once alright." Bera coming up, the stone cold woman almost melting, a surprising hug. "Good to see you alive, that was... Remarkable."

"I am hard to kill." Bera grinned, awkwardly patting her shoulders to be let go.

"What is this outfit? Do they not dress you for war in 13?"

"We tried commander, she almost threw me of a seven floor drop." Boggs said, Bera stupid cocky proud.

"Well that's 8's victor for you." A harsh pat on the back. "Now come, if you want to see injured, it is now or never."

One of the factories had been set up as a hospital, people jammed into it, over each other, filling every little place.

Bera's ears tuned out the conversation, looking around, many people pointing more at her then Potato, a ghost from the arena, their victor, back and alive... Hope was alive.

She crouched down and grabbed the hand of a child with soaking through bandages tied to her head, obscuring half her face, holding the little hand in her own.

She was so angry, so angry at what they did to her home, her people, feeling responsible to protect all these lives.

"Cecelia's children?" She asked, looking at an adult nearby, the victors families were well known. "Valerius?"

"Come." One limping man with a cane said, making his way away, she followed through the crowd. Some of them reaching out, touching her arms and shoulders, wanting to make sure it was indeed their victor and not mass hysteria.

From a girl that was a hassle to most too the woman they all were ready to follow blindly.

A bit of a monster in how she shoved over the injured and dying just to run through the crowd at a familiar gruff face.

Valerius was there, probably the only peacekeeper spared by the district's citizens because of what he did for them, a tourniquet still around his leg even if bellow the knee it was blown off, bandages bleeding through and a broken arm slinged around his body, bandaged face with an eye and mouth only thing seen with tufts of hair peeking out.

With once last person stumbled over, Bera fell against him, holding him tighter then she had ever done in her life, careless with his pain, crouching to be at the good height.

He was first surprised but tears, so much tears, burst out with a cry of distress held back as he grabbed a fistful of her T-shirt, hearing stitching rip from the strength behind it.

"How dare you volunteer you stupid child?!" He yelled. "You realize what it felt like to see you up there once again?"

"I know, I know." She muttered against him, pushing away a little, taking a breath, blinking away the dampness. "But Cecelia stood no chance."

"Your damned savior complex." He grabbed her face. "I thought we had lost you."

"I am not that easy to kill. You think a spear can harm me?" She grinned a bit, looking around. "The kids?" Know he'd understand since they were talking about them, her hands on her hips.

And so followed the head shake and even more tears.

"I tried." A sob left the man she knew as unbreakable. "I tried to get them out but the bombs were falling, it was chaos. I could hear them screaming, the fire, oh fuck fire, I could hear them scream and could do nothing but listen and cut my hands on the rocks."

She swallowed, she had hoped to bring them back with her to 13 with Valerius. She is not an idealist, she excepted at least one child dead, maybe even two, not the three of them.

"Her husband?"

"He was with his children."

She'd have stayed but she heard Boggs yell for her, she bit her tongue.

"I'll be back."

But before she could leave to ask the man why she was needed, Valerius grabbed her arm.

"I tried, I promise."

"I know, just how I try but we can't always win the games, some must die for a victor to be crowned. I promise that I'll kill Snow myself for all that he has done."

"I regret what I've done. So much."

"You told me many times and I hate you for it... But you are my family, and for that, I love you."

Leaving the crying man alone, almost like fleeing her own words, more then glad to talk with Boggs and the others.