She was a capitol elite.
He was the youngest victor in history.
Their friendship was frowned upon, but their love was forbidden.
Extended Summary Inside
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Finnick x OC
Pre- hunger games - Mockingjay
Disclaimer: I am not Suzanne Collins. All rights...
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It seemed Finnick was right. The first sign that there was going to be something different about this year was that Haymitch was not drunk.
When Finnick plopped down with the other mentors, it was the first thing he noticed. Haymitch was happily chatting with Seeder and Beetee.
"What's up with him?" he asked. Ezra shrugged as he looked at the three.
"Maybe it has to do with his tributes," he guessed. "It's not every day you get a volunteer from Twelve."
"Has anyone ever volunteered in Twelve?"
"Not to my recollection," Ezra said.
"You say that like you're an old man," said Johanna Mason, the newest mentor to their group.
"I'm not old," Ezra pouted, "but I am charmingly wise."
"I don't think being charmingly wise is a thing," Johanna snorted.
Finnick watched the two of them bicker with amusement as they waited for the ceremony to begin. He only intervened when Johanna whacked Ezra, who in turn whacked her back. They both sat there hitting each other for a few seconds before Finnick separated their flailing arms.
"This is a stupid argument," Finnick said. He looked over at Johanna and winked. "Being charmingly wise is definitely a thing." He gestured to himself.
Johanna snorted in amusement, and Finnick held up his hands in protest.
"How else do you think we became so irresistible?" Both he and Ezra stood and flexed with so much flare that even Haymitch noticed.
"Sit down before you embarrass yourselves!" he called out. Finnick and Ezra flopped back down with a laugh as the lights began to shift and the show began.
When Amara walked out on stage, she glittered in her white dress. She looked beautiful. She looked like a bride that would never be his.
Even Johanna seemed to melt a little when she began to sing. She closed her eyes and swayed to the music. It seemed that even sarcastic, dry, crass Johanna could be moved by hearing Amara sing.
When it was over, the crowd clapped so loudly that Finnick wondered if they could be heard in the districts. Amara waved at everyone and then stepped back down from the podium. She slipped back stage, and the tributes were released.
Everyone oohed and awed over the tributes. They tributes from One were both very good looking, and Finnick wondered if One only managed to produce pretty people.
"I don't know how you do this year after year," Johanna said as she slumped in her seat. "I've been doing it for three years and I'm completely bored."
Ezra shrugged. "You get used to it. It turns into routine since it's pretty rare something interesting...what is that?"
All the victors sat forward as the tributes from District Twelve emerged from the tunnel. They were on fire. Finnick had reviewed the tape with Mags and his tributes of each of the other reapings. He knew there would be something special about the girl from Twelve, but Finnick had to applaud their stylist, whoever he was.
"Wow." Even Johanna was impressed. Cashmere and Gloss looked curiously down at the district that had just become the fan favorite.
"They've got fire," Enobaria smirked. Ezra snorted and Finnick punched his arm.
"Don't encourage her," he rolled his eyes. Enobaria grinned, flashing her teeth.
In unison, everyone turned to Haymitch, as if they all suddenly remembered he was there.
He was smirking.
**
"You guys did a good job," Finnick said. Reiner winced as he looked down at the tributes. It was clear that he wasn't a fan of how young the tributes had been since Annie won her games.
Still, Finnick knew Snow saw the Heiress' interference as an act of rebellion. She had been so focused on helping District Four win that they were the district associated with her. They hadn't been allowed volunteers since (not that Snow would ever admit that was the reason), and the Heiress hadn't bothered with them.
"I'll be by tomorrow morning with their training attire," Reiner said. Finnick nodded and guided his tributes away.
"Tomorrow is going to be familiar," Mags said. Volunteering may have been prohibited, but the academy was still in full swing. Now, the goal was just to teach kids how to fight to the best of their ability. That way, if they were reaped, they had a fighting chance. "Bright and early, I'll be taking you down to the training arena in the Tribute Center. You'll spend the day there learning how to fight and survive."
"I know that everyone wants to lunge for a weapon, but learning the basics of survival are just as important. You'll need to know how to cook, how to set a trap, how to build a fire, and whatever it is they decide to teach you," Finnick added on.
"Tomorrow will be the first indicator of what the arena will look like. If there's a focus on water then you know it's most likely going to be an aquatic arena. If it's rock based... you get the picture. Learn the plants because plant life will tell you a lot about the arena they're sending you too."
"Once you know what the arena is going to look like, we can figure out the best way to survive in it."
"And if you do nothing else, listen to everything your instructor tells you to do. These next four days will determine if you have a shot at surviving in that arena."
The four of them talked about what training was going to look like the entire walk back to the Tribute Center. When they walked through the doors, Finnick was almost expecting Amara to be standing in the foyer. Mags wanted to laugh when she watched him deflate out of the corner of her eye.
"Go," Mags instructed quietly. Finnick raised a brow, pretending he had no idea what she was talking about. Mags rolled her eyes. "I'll make sure they get to bed. Go see her."
Finnick didn't need to be told twice.
He jogged down the street until he reached her building.
Penny greeted him with a wide smile when he walked in.
"Mr. Odair, how are you this evening?" she asked. Finnick just smirked.
"C'mon, Penny, how many times do I have to insist you call me Finnick?"
Penny went red as Finnick slipped around the corner and hopped into the first elevator available.
He hated when he had to go too long without seeing her. He hated that the only time he got to see her was when he was either serving Snow's clients or watching children fight to the death. He should have found a way for her to move back home with him when he had the chance. Now, he was watched too closely.
They all were.
Mack nodded sternly at Finnick as he walked passed him to get into the apartment.
He found Amara sitting at the table with a note in her hand.
"Amara White, do you have a secret admirer?" Finnick teased. Amara, who clearly hadn't heard him, yelped and dropped the note. It landed in her cereal, and it took everything in him to hold back the laughter under her glare.
Amara wouldn't consider President Coin a secret admirer, but she was glad that the note dissolved before Finnick could see the words etched across the note:
