The Mentor. (Cato Hadley)

Chapter Ten.

Rewritten 03.18.2023

I don't see Cato again until the next morning, when our paths cross on the way to dinner. "Nice job," I say curtly, knowing he'll understand what I'm speaking of.

"Thanks," he doesn't even acknowledge me, looking straight forward as our steps match each other. He's a lot taller than me, and his normal steps would be much larger. He wants to walk with me.

We make it to the ugly green dining table, plates piled sky high and food covering every inch of the cloth. In the Capitol's mind, this is a celebration of the start of the Games. In my mind, it's like raising a pig for slaughter. All of us - Brutus, Cato, Clove, the stylists, and I - gather in the living room, our formal goodbyes.

Tomorrow morning, I will send Cato and Clove into the arena. Well, I won't, Rodo and Ericka will. I'll send them in a Hovercraft to the Launch Room, or what the Districts call the Stockyard - the place animals go for slaughter.

The year I won, I thought for sure it would come down to me and a tribute named Titus - thankfully, the Gamemakers took him out with an avalanche. He would kill his victims, then turn to cannibalism. The Capitol didn't like that very much, so they ensured he wasn't the Victor.

I wave as the rest of the group say their final goodbyes, not wanting to touch either tribute. I was destroyed last year after I lost Janelle, I couldn't handle that again, especially with my closeness to Cato. Much to my dismay, Cato pulls me into a hug. "Meet me on the roof at midnight," he whispers to me before pulling away.

"I may be promoted to One next year!" I roll my eyes at Vibiana's insensitive comment, although understanding that acting like that is normal in the Capitol. "The best district!" In reality, Vibiana Dawe is lucky she gained District Two.

"Any more words of advice?" Clove asks Brutus and I. For a second, just a tiny millisecond of time, I see what looks like fear in Clove's eyes. She's only fifteen, which leads me to wonder. Why did she decide to volunteer?

"Yeah," I nod, accepting a bottle of whiskey from an Avox. "Win," Clove nods, a smirk steady on her face.

I check the clock after Vibiana dismisses the two to the showers, seeing that I still have two hours before I were to go meet Cato on the roof. I decide to shower too, before heading up to meet him at eleven forty-five.

Cato is already there, throwing a pebble at the force field then catching it in his hand. He ignores my arrival, staring out at the Capitol as he continuously throws the pebble.

"Why'd you want me to meet you?" I ask, breaking the silence as well as announcing my arrival. This could be the last time I see Cato Hadley alive, I would rather not waste it. "Look Cato, I came up here as a favor for you. Do you think I really want to be up this late? You and I both to be up early, I have to seal your sponsorship deals so you can survive. What do you want?"

He snorts, as if it's the most hilarious thing he's ever heard. "I don't need you to get me anything, I can survive with or without sponsors."

I grip the ledge tightly, severely fed up with his antics. "Whatever, Cato. What is it that you want?"

"I wanted to give you something," he finally turns around, tossing the pebble onto the ground beneath our feet.

"What could you possibly have to give me?" I cross my arms, extremely confused at this point.

"Just let me do this, okay?" I resist the urge to scream at him, to tell me he couldn't order me around. And, despite my mind protesting against it, I let Cato Hadley kiss me. His arms lock around my waist as I stand tall, wrapping mine around his neck. He pushes me against the stone wall, before pulling away. "That, that is what I wanted to give you. Think about that while I'm gone."

He goes to walk away, but I grab his arm, pulling him back. "Wait," I say, looking up at him with near tears in my eyes. "I know you know," I don't need to say the words for him to know what I'm speaking of, the blonde placing his hand on my cheek gently. "What you don't know, is that it's never been something that I wanted.."

Without hesitation, he leads me back inside, to the elevator, holding me tightly so I didn't slam into the wall. We enter our floor, walking past the curious eyes of Brutus and Vibiana as he leads me to my bedroom. And that night, for the first time ever, it's my choice. I had sex with Cato Hadley.

It seems as though neither of us sleep that night, soaking in our final moments together. Seeing Cato again is not guaranteed; at any moment, one of the twenty-three other tributes could kill him. I choose to think positively, thinking that I could possibly get him out of this with the sponsorships.

At eight o'clock in the morning, it's time to say goodbye. "Cato," I say, staring up into his eyes as he readies himself to leave my room. "Promise me you'll win."

He doesn't say a word, just produces his signature smirk. He presses his lips to mine once more, hugging me tightly before exiting my room. The tributes are officially gone; they boarded their designated hovercrafts, and have gotten the trackers imbedded into their arms. Us mentors have relocated from the Training Center to the Hunger Games headquarters, ready to start the sponsorship signings.

The table I sit at is extremely long, mentors sitting side by side as a large group of Capitol citizens prepares to hand over their money. I sit in between Gloss of District One and Beetee of District Three, preparing for the countdown and the bloodbath to begin. Even in the year I was a part of the Games, I have never been this anxious. I'm worried, extremely worried, about Cato.

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The Games are about to start, Cato is going to kill countless people. When he makes it out - if he makes it out - he's never going to be the same. He might just suffer the same fate as me.

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The City Circle goes silent, everyone's face in awe as the arena comes into view. There's a forest, with lots of trees. That's a hell of a lot better than the desolate, tundra wasteland I got. Each arena is only used once, then turned into a museum of a sort. You could participate in re-enactments, and see the specific spot where tributes were killed.

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The huge screens around the City Circle displayed the face of each tribute, Cato's holding a smirk. They take their stances, preparing to run at the Cornucopia for supplies.

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Ten. That's the part of the countdown where my district partner, Brace Howard, stepped off his pedestal. He set off the landmine, causing his own death. He didn't even make it to the Hunger Games, as they didn't start yet.

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1.

"Ladies and gentlemen, let the 74th Hunger Games begin!" The voice of Claudius Templesmith bounces off the Capitol buildings as the cannon sounds, signifying the start of the Game.