A Game Of Justice ✭ Cato Hadley

Four - King Of The Castle

14th July 75PD

It's just after midday when the train pulls into the station behind the Justice Building in District Two; to shouts and heckles and jibes of the large crowd that have gathered on the platforms. The crowd is separated by a large number of Peacekeepers, — a suspiciously large number in Enobaria's opinion —  sectioned off by ropes as usual. Except this time, the crowd is heaving and almost bursting at the seams because they're all waiting to see who steps off the train. Peering through the blacked-out window, Xanthe can see that the crowd in the central population strings all the way out of the train station and likely into the Square in front of the building where Cato has been ordered to give his speech in twenty minutes time. A speech which Xanthe has spent the last three hours of the train journey perfecting, finalising every detail and word to scrawl onto the cards, and working out what Cato cannot say. A speech which he cannot be late for and one which he cannot get wrong. For his life depends on it.

When the train stops, the crowd starts to bang against the windows to pressure the occupants to leave. Xanthe lines up her victors; Brutus first, then Enobaria and then Cato, and allows the Avoxes and helpers to leave the train first. They carry a box full of belongings, each of them marked with the names of the victors. It falls silent when Brutus leaves, and the crowd hold their breath longer when Enobaria leaves behind him.

The flock erupts in loud shouts when Cato takes one step down from the train, and grows even louder when he reaches the platform. Though, there's a small crowd who keep their eyes trained on the carriage doors, waiting for anyone else to appear. Waiting for Clio.

But she doesn't come and then the crowd cheers again as the victors are led across the platform and into the back of the Justice Building. Once they're securely inside, the group can hear the crowd flocking to the roped off area in front of the stage still erected at the front of the building where all the important events such as the Reaping and victory speeches occur. Enobaria can see her grandmother standing in the first row, protected by a row of Peacekeepers behind and with Brutus' elderly father to her left and Cato's family to her right. The boy's mother, father and younger sister, all tall with bright blonde hair and pale blue eyes that perfectly match the brightness of their hair, stick out like a sore thumb when compared to the dark features of most of District Two; but it's Enobaria who pales when she notices the small, frail woman at the end of the row. Clio's grandmother on her mother's side. Short, dark hair that is greying down to her chin and long sleeved, red clothing even in the heat of summer, to represent her granddaughter. The same granddaughter she hasn't spoken to in years, content with allowing herself to grieve and blame the young woman for the untimely deaths of her daughter and younger granddaughter. Enobaria wants to ask one of the assistants within the Justice Building to move the woman along, afraid of Cato's reaction if he spots her but she doesn't, only thankful that her distant cousins haven't come out of the woodwork for this speech because they'd only disgrace them all by leaving when they realise who is coming out to speak to them.

Xanthe looks between her three victors and swallows nervously, knowing that she has to be the one to give them the reminder. Her gaze flits to the instructions on her first card, the card written by one of President Snow's assistants and she swallows again. "Under instruction from the President, there must be no mention of the failed rebel plot or any related matters. This includes but is not limited to: the act of blowing up the arena itself, any acts deemed rebellious by oneself, or the mention of any parties involved in the plan." When she reaches the bottom of the card she moves her eyes to meet Cato's.

"What?" He snaps when he realises.

"It says here," she rests her pointer finger over the words at the bottom of the card, drawing attention to them. "There is to be no mention of Clio. Not a word, or..."