One shots

THG Oneshot 15: Inside The Victor's Village

This was requested by @Happy_2_Hippos on AO3. I hope you like it! As always, I don't own the characters, if I did, none of my babies would be dead. Happy reading loves!

Returning home from mentoring was always a somber affair. Even if you brought home a tribute, a new Victor, you were still returning home with one less child than you left with. 

This year, following the end of the 73rd games, Enobaria and Brutus were returning home, alone, again. They hadn't won since the 69th, and even then, that Victory was rather heavily overshadowed by...other things...when in the Mentor's Room. 

To be fair, most other districts had a harder time winning. 12 hadn't won in almost twenty five years. 3 hadn't won since the 58th or 59th. 11 had won for the first time in seventeen years during the 72nd. Hell, 7 only had five Victors in 73 years of games, and one of them had died of old age already, while a second had been so mentally scarred that he never left his bed-and it wasn't Peter either. 

Enobaria sighed as they entered her home in the Victor's Village. 2 had the most Victors out of all the districts with the most full houses. But 2 had some of the....messiest Victors as well. Enobaria's was considered....messy. It drew fire from Lyme especially. 

Brutus glanced out the still open door, sending an exasperated glare in the direction where Lyme no doubt was sending a nasty look her way. 

"You good, Baria?" He asked gently, as he closed the door. 

"Managing." Enobaria replied. "You?" 

"Managing." 

He looked at her tiredly, making his way to the living room and settling onto her couch in the same place he always sat on. At this point, Enobaria was pretty convinced that he lived in her house more than his own. He held out a hand for her, letting her twine their fingers together, and get pulled lightly onto the couch with him. 

She rested her head on his shoulder, sighing contently. "Long games season." 

"Yeah. Feel bad for Beetee and Wiress this year. They've had a rough last few games." Brutus murmured, running his hands through her dark hair, quietly examining the way the ends curled loosely. 

"Mhm..." Enobaria agreed. "Downward spiral for them since the 69th, I think. I mean, the 70th was bad for everyone. Johanna accidentally decapitated their girl in the 71st. Their kids were killed pretty roughly in the 72nd. The boy this year...it wasn't a pretty death." 

Brutus nodded. "They've had some rough luck. There haven't been a lot of pretty victories recently. 70 was a mess of a game entirely, no clue what the Capitol was doing there. Everything's been chaotic since...I don't even know. Gloss and Cashmere? Finnick, maybe?" 

Enobaria shuddered. "I'd even wager me." 

Brutus held her a little closer as they leaned back against the couch. "It's never been pretty to win, Baria. Things are just....tense right now." 

"What have you heard?" 

"There are....whispers....I've heard from the others. They're saying that there's unrest in the other districts." Brutus hesitated, glancing around nervously. 

"I've heard some rumors too." Enobaria admitted. "Wiress and Beetee have been really anxious lately, and I've heard some stuff about food strikes in 3. I think the Capitol might be starving the district." 

"That explains the issues with their tributes. They've been almost as malnourished as 12's kids." Brutus commented a little sadly. 

Enobaria hummed. "You ever regret being from a Career district?"