The 151st Annual Hunger Games

Games~Day 3~Capitol

(This is set in the Capitol. Sorry if you were expecting an arena chapter.)

Marlyn Jane's POV:

I pick up the silver tray of Capitol delicacies and carry it into the main sitting room where President Jean stands facing the window. I set the tray on the oak side table and turn to leave, brushing my hands off on my bleached smock.

"Marlyn, dear, come here." She says briskly, her voice curt and authoritative. I slowly turn around again to face her. She hasn't moved her gaze from the window but she motions for me to come forward. My hand immediately reaches for my pocket, feeling the folded piece of paper hidden underneath a handkerchief. My footstep are light and unsure, my hands shaking.

President Jean turns to look at me now, taking in my thin and weary appearance.

"What have you been doing, Marlyn? Have the Avox's been treating my daughter well?" She asks genuinely, shocking me by the disappearance of her cynical demeanour. She looks down at me, her dark eyes mirroring my own. I laugh crudely, "Since when did you start caring?"

She grimaces, as if her attempt at making amends is going downhill faster than she thought. "Since the day you were born, now please Marlyn, don't take this out in me forever."

I shake my head, turning to leave without bothering to hear another word from this cowardly, arrogant woman who claims she once loved me. Who claims she still does.

She grabs my wrist and pulls me around roughly, aggravated now.

"You're lucky I didn't let them kill you Marlyn. You're lucky I managed to cover up your mistakes while still keeping my place. You almost cost me everything, the least you could do is be grateful I let you down easy."

I tune out her voice after a while, I've become used to her futile attempts at mending our relationship. A relationship she destroyed by betraying me. She claims she stopped my punishment and yet here I am, spending my days with the Avox's serving any person that summons me. To me, that is a worse punishment to any kind of violent torture proposed by the Capitol citizens.

"You just protect yourself. You changed my name hoping people would end up forgetting about me. You would do anything to keep your place as the President, even if it did mean executing me. You were too attached to let your precious daughter go." I sneer, giving her a face of false sympathy. She keeps a smile plastered on her face but in her eyes I can see the regret and pain I cause her every time she sees me. Good. I want her to feel the pain she has caused me.

She turns sharply back to the window and looks out to the horizon of towering Capitol buildings. She dismisses me with a simple wave of her hand and I don't hesitate before leaving the room as quickly as possible. The folded piece of paper was still securely in my pocket and I rushed towards the Gamemakers room as fast as I could.

When I approach the hallway I pull out my borrowed ID and scan my way through the side doors into the deserted lounge. As always, Acel is there waiting in the shadows.

"Did you lock the door?" He says urgently. I nod my head and he relaxes, motioning for me to follow him to into the room. He leads me past the luxurious couches and chairs and along the bountiful table of every food or delicacy to ever exist in Panem.

The Gamemakers lounge is dimly lit and is obnoxiously clean. Everything is placed in neat order and the surfaces in the room are dusted and shined to perfection. I shudder, thinking about the poor Avox that had to do all that work.

Acel leads me across the excessively large lounge and down a hallway, connected to the Gamemakers control centre. Obviously the entrance is severely protected and there is no chance I would be allowed through. Acel turns towards me and I slip the folded paper into his hand. He smiles reassuringly at me and nods as he scans his ID through the heavy door of the centre. I wait behind, hoping he gets the message through on time, the Games are already three days in and we could be running out of options.

Acel disappears through the security mechanism and I watch him slip along the outskirts of the room before the door closes and I'm shut out. I sigh, heading back towards the Avox house with an empty pocket and my daily job fulfilled.

A/N: Plot twist! :)

In case that was too confusing because I feel like I didn't really explain it all that clearly:

1. President Jean has a daughter
2. Marlyn Jean (her daughter) was born 14 years ago
3. When Marlyn was about 8-9 she broke Capitol laws (association with District citizens) and had to be punished
4. President Jean was (obviously) reluctant to do anything and forgave Marlyn
5. However, the Capitol citizens wanted her to pay the price of what she did as if she were one of them, they wanted it to be fair
6. President Jean, not wanting anger the citizens, settled on sending Marlyn to live with the Avoxs and to basically be an like an Avox for the rest of her life, or at least until the situation calmed down
7. She changed Marlyn's last name hoping people would forget about her daughter and her mistakes and has been hiding her away for the past 5 years
8. Yes, deep down President Jean does feel guilty about what she did but Marlyn has no interest in forgiving her
9. Marlyn may or may not be a part of the rebels. Maybe she wants revenge on her mother....I'm not gonna spoil it.

Sorry that was so confusing. Thanks for reading!