𝙏𝙝𝙚 𝙍𝙖𝙫𝙚𝙣 𝙤𝙛 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝘾𝙖𝙥𝙞𝙩𝙤𝙡, 𝙁𝙞𝙣𝙣𝙞𝙘𝙠 𝙊𝙙𝙖𝙞𝙧

𝒞𝒽𝒶𝓅𝓉𝑒𝓇 34: 𝒟𝑒𝒶𝒹 𝐿𝒾𝓉𝓉𝓁𝑒 𝐵𝒾𝓇𝒹𝒾𝑒

"I always found the nickname 'Golden Boy' ridiculous!" Raven teases at his nickname in the Capitol, as she stuffs her mouth with some of the popcorn they also stole. "You are far from a golden boy."

        "Says the one whose nickname is also little birdie," Finnick counters. "Little birdie, you sure you don't mind the nickname?"

        Raven groans at the mention of her other nickname. "I swear, everyone calls me little birdie," she complains. Finnick's face is red from laughter. "Ever since I was a kid, my parents would call me it. Then during my games, the other tributes called me the same thing, and even now, you're calling me it," she rolls her eyes.

        "I mean it suits you. You're quite short," he jokes, dodging the pillow Raven throws at him.

        "I am 5'4 thank you very much," she huffs. "Ok but no one ever called my brother little birdie even though robins are far smaller and much more vulnerable than ravens," Raven explains. Finnick holds back more laughter at her passion for her nickname.

        "What were your parent's names, if you don't mind me asking," Finnick cautiously adds at the end.

        "My dad was named Lark, and my mom was named Circe. A slight twist on the different circe bird species," Raven tells Finnick. "My family decided to keep the theme of bird names. They named my brother Robin because he was a very cheerful baby, similar to the cheerful song of a robin. They named me Raven because of my hair color and eyes. Apparently they were slightly ominous, but I think that's just them justifying the name that has no reason behind it," Raven laughs.

        Finnick gulps down the rest of his water. "You know, robins really are weak in comparison to ravens, but they are incredibly defensive."

        Raven tilts her head, looking at Finnick. "Did you read up on birds?" She smiles, her cheeks turning slightly pink. Finnick chuckles, shaking his head.

         "Perhaps," he sheepishly admits, hiding his face.

         "Well, I'm quite pleased with that." Raven stops talking for a moment, thinking about the nickname 'little birdie.' "You know, it's funny. In the Capitol, little birdie was used to taunt me during the games. However, my friends and family use it in an endearing way. They'd call me a scared little birdie when I was scared of the dark as a kid and even during my time in the Capitol, people would say that to me."

        Finnick leans forward towards Raven. "You are anything but a scared little birdie," he reassures.

        Raven sits up straighter, putting on a sarcastic smile. "Oh, I know. Robin's a far bigger scaredy bird." Finnick and Raven both guffaw at this. "I swear, I sneak up on him sometimes while he's singing and he shrills in such a way that the robins singing with him do the same. I can barely distinguish them." 

        There is a moment of silence between the two, as they think about what else they can discuss. Already, it is 2 AM, and they somehow aren't sleepy. The sugar is likely keeping them awake. "What is up with that tribute of yours, Star?" Finnick questions. 

        Raven shrugs. "I'm praying he has something that will get him sponsors."  

.·:*¨ ✘♚✘ ¨*:·..·:*¨ ✘♚✘ ¨*:·..·:*¨ ✘♚✘ ¨*:·. 

"How did you score an 8?" Raven tries to hide her slight surprise. 

        Star looks around to make sure Sage isn't in earshot. "I'm good at camouflaging myself," he whispers in Raven's ear. Raven looks taken aback, but gives a smile of approval.