The Mentor. (Cato Hadley)

Chapter Twenty-Four.

Rewritten 03.29.2023

"So you're trying to tell me that he accidentally killed Five?" Brutus is pissed, having quite a bit of trouble with the news that we're now in the top four, and Peeta had accidentally made a kill. With a growl, he flips the coffee table over in the living room, completely shattering the glass. Vibiana and I are sitting on the couch, watching as Brutus takes his anger out on the furniture.

Capitol life has gotten boring, I miss the emptiness of my house in Victors Village. With as little tributes as we have left, the remaining mentors are starting to get restless, completely over sitting in the Capitol anxiously waiting.

"That's enough!" I yell, standing up from my seat and screaming at the middle-aged man. "There's no point in this! You and I both know that the Gamemakers are going pull some giant twist which means that Peeta, Cato, Katniss, and Thresh are going to be forced together. We just have to wait."

Brutus, still seething, sinks down onto the couch opposite of me. "Our tribute will win," he nods. "Now, let's watch the Games," he smirks, as if this is going to be the most exciting moment of his life.

"The girl from District Five is very clever," Vibiana smiles. Her eyes are fixated on the large television screen, watching as Katniss and Peeta cook their food. The Gamemakers have dried up all the water except for the lake, forcing the tributes together. "It's good she was taken out now, because she had a great chance of winning. She died peacefully as well."

"Her death just means we're one step closer to winning," Brutus smiles, proving that all he truly cares about is a win. He turns up the volume, his cue that he wants all of us to focus on the game.

Katniss stuffs the remaining berries into the leather pouch that came from Marvel's pack she took, tucking them away in her bag. "It fooled Foxface," she says, using a nickname I've never heard of the District Five girl. "Maybe it'll fool Cato, too."

A knock at the door sounds and I standup, unwilling to watch this anymore. It's becoming too stressful, too anxiety-ridden. I'm pleasantly surprised about who it is, with Finnick Odair being on the other side of the door. The sight of Finnick distracts me from my thoughts of Cato, honest thoughts of the brutal eighteen-year-old boy who has volunteered for this kind of Hell. His reaction to the explosion, very much different from the rest of the Careers. Now that I think about it, I'm pretty sure I fell for an unhinged man who's slightly insane, maybe with mental problems.

"Finnick!" I exclaim, stepping into the hallway and shutting the door behind me. "I didn't know you were still here."

"Yeah, well," he has a slight smirk on his face, but I know it's just a cover. "Capitol duties call, you know? I figured you wouldn't actually tear away your eyes from the final part of the Games, considering your boyfriend is in it."

"I'm not dating Cato, Finnick. I never will be, and I'll never date anybody. Snow makes sure of that," Finnick sighs, pulling me in for a hug. "He has to be breaking some sort of law, right? Forcing a sixteen year old into prostitution?" I don't even care if Snow is listening anymore, there's nothing he's not going to do in the future when he realizes that I've been a part of the Rebellion.

"Seventeen," I raise my eyebrows at Cato's correction, completely confused. "Marblyn, don't you know what today's date is?"

"Uh, no, I don't think so," I wrack my brain, trying to remember the date. It's no use, as I haven't looked at the date since the reaping, which was on July fourth. "August something?"

"Marblyn, today is August seventh. You know, your birthday?" Finnick chuckles, shaking his head.

Finnick's revelation that I have turned seventeen today means nothing as I watch the television in the hallway. The Capitol wants to ensure you can see The Hunger Games wherever you are, whenever, so there are televisions everywhere.

I hear a scream that is most definitely Thresh, then the cameras show us Cato sprinting through the woods, wearing a suit of armor. Cato didn't kill Thresh, they would have shown us that. So, if Cato didn't kill Thresh, who did? Or more appropriately, what killed Thresh?

I watch intently as the first creature - definitely not a natural animal - leaps into the plain, revealing what had been chasing Cato. Soon after, a dozen more creatures enter the clearing to join it. In shock, I watch as Katniss and Peeta follow Peeta, instead of running from him. They see the real threat in the arena.