the lucky one | finnick odair

vicious

-now playing "vicious" by Sabrina Carpenter-

Cove felt a little awkward on the train ride to the Capitol. Rush kept eyeing her up and down, as if he was looking for any potential weaknesses. Finnick sat beside her, whispering compliments in her ear and about how proud he was of "his girl". And Koi was the most terrifying. She was staring Cove dead in the eyes, as if she was searching for the same pain she had felt when her name was picked from that deadly glass bowl years ago. Cove felt like Koi could easily see past her innocent girl act she had performed oh so well on stage. Thankfully the stare was cut when Rush began to talk.

"So, what tips do you guys have for me?" he stated, eyes now shifting between Koi and Finnick. Koi looked at the boy, it was his turn for her calculated gaze.

"Don't trust the careers," Koi stated bluntly as she took a sip of a deep red wine, the same color as her lips.

"Why not? We are apart of the career districts. Plus it worked pretty well for Odair over there during his games," Rush stated, throwing his hands on the table. Finnick simply smirked and sat straighter in his seat. He could see how frightened Rush was under his strong facade, it was like he was trying to play the same game Cove was, only failing.

"District Four has always been the outlier of the career districts, One and Two will always stick together. Also, Finnick has charm and can use it to be manipulative. He was also really skilled with a trident, from what I remember. So if you're so confident in your chances with the careers, don't be upset when you literally get stabbed in the back," Koi said bluntly, still staring the younger boy in his eyes.

Rush remained silent, only throwing glares towards Koi every couple minutes.

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Cove felt her body tense as she realized how many people were outside of the train, waiting to see just a glimpse of her. After taking a deep breath, she immediately put on a smile and fixed her posture. Rush stayed behind her, an angry look on his face, still holding a grudge against Koi's words, no matter how true they were. Finnick and Koi remained stationed at the back of the group, Fauna making a rare appearance after hiding in the alcohol storage room and standing beside the Victors.

As the doors of the train opened, Cove immediately began walking, keeping her sweet smile on her face as she waved at the Capitol citizens. She also heard screams of her last name in the crowd. When she turned slightly to make sure she wasn't straying too far from her group, she turned and saw Rush glaring at the back of her head. Cove immediately turned back around, pretending as if she didn't see it before being escorted into a tall building right in the heart of the Capitol.

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Cove was put into a large bedroom in the District Four level in the Tribute Center. She slept peacefully before being woken up by an already intoxicated Fauna, telling her to wait for a team to get her ready for the Tribute Parade. Cove sat quietly before her peace was interrupted by a team of brightly dressed men and women breaking into her room. They immediately crowded her and began touching her face and hair, whispering about how it all needed to change. Cove winced as her hair was accidently yanked.

"Hey, back off the poor girl, yeah? She's our special guest," a voice came from the doorway. The team immediately backed away from Cove, and she was able to see a woman standing there with her hands on her hips. The woman had long, straight platinum hair and wore all black clothes, sticking out like a sore thumb in comparison to the rest of the team. Her thick black boots gave her a couple inches added onto her height and her corset top defined her chest. She slowly walked over to Cove before crouching down to her height from where she sat on a stool. Cove immediately took notice of two things that stook out to her. The woman's bright yellow cat-like eyes and a long cheshire grin.