Archive of Our Own ^beta

They didn't like each other; which was natural since they didn't even know each other.

Not more than what most of the people in Panam knew about them, or assumed from watching the Games.

So it was logical that when they won, there were no direct words exchanged among the three of them. Katniss wasn't sure and actually didn't care if the two of them spoke; after all, didn't they form a Career pack during the Game?

She doubts that they were friends, though. There weren't any friends in the Hunger Games. She knew that much.

They had separate post-Games interviews, where she had to play the sad-stricken widowed-girlfriend, even going far as to express how she wished it was Peeta in her place. She did indeed felt bad about Peeta's death, especially after realizing that the feelings he expressed before the games were actually genuine. However, Katniss realized that what she actually felt, her authentic feeling towards Peeta's death wasn't important because it was not what the Capitol wanted.

They wanted the drama of a sixteen-year-old girl heartbroken and devastated by her lover's death, not a girl filled with guilt from watching a friend die.

She was supposed to be passive-aggressive towards Cato and Marvel. Especially Cato.

She rolled her eyes when Haymitch gave her the advice, because - Did he really think that she would be anything beyond the spectrum of distantly polite with them in public? But apparently, Haymitch wanted her to keep playing the role that she was assigned as one of the three Victors. It was the only way that she'll be guaranteed safety.

Keep the drama going, keep the people entertained, get to live. That was the deal.

"Let me do the talking." was what Haymitch said before walking in front of her into the room.

Cato was already there along with his mentor, Brutus, who was pacing the room.

She didn't want to sit down so instead, she stood beside Haymitch.

"I think we can all agree that this is all ridiculous, but we already knew that about the Capitol." Haymitch started.

Katniss glanced over at him, surprised by his carefree tone. As if there wasn't a possibility that the Capitol was listening in them right now. If they set up cameras and mics in the dining hall, who knows where else on the train they were being watched.

"Yet, we still have to deal with this." Haymitch pulled out a chair to sit down. Katniss still opted to stand.

In all honesty, Katniss did not want to be there, but she would hate if her decision were being made without her being present.

So she stood there mostly in silence.

"I think the best strategy is to not come out and say anything." It was Brutus who spoke and the man's tone along with his words surprised her. "If we even try to combat the narrative, who's to say that it won't add fire to the flame."

Haymitch was shaking his head before Katniss had the sense to announce her dislike of his ridiculous plan. "That might work for you, but that won't be the best for us."

Katniss looked down at Haymitch, although she was standing behind him and could only see the back of his greying head. A part of her was surprised that she was looking out for the safest option for her and not trying to manipulate the situation to throw her into another fake love-cross relationship; one that she would in no way agree too, even if it had potential to save her from the ominous plans of Snow.

"Katniss is still grieving the loss of Peeta." Haymitch added in a very convincing voice, although Katniss could clearly see the humored twinkle in Brutus eyes as he stared at Haymitch and then quickly looked up to pass his gaze on her.

"Sure." He murmured. "And for how long do you expect Snow will allow her to grieve for?"

The realization that perhaps everyone knew the plans that Snow had for her made Katniss simultaneously sick to her stomach and brought on a headache fueled by her rage.

Haymitch sighed but pushed back his chair to stand up. "As long as the Capitol citizens care, and trust me when I say, there is nothing that they love more than a legendary love story."

He took out a small candy wrapped in red paper from his pant's pocket. "They'll care for a long time."

---

When they got to District 3, there was an argument about who should do the speech.

It was the first district they visited where one of the Victor's weren't a local, and although it was assumed that Katniss would make the speech, she abruptly made it known that she would be giving the speech the night before they would reach District 3.

"It's not like you have a choice, darling," Haymitch whispered loud enough for everyone in the quiet room to hear.

"I'm not doing it." Katniss continued to eat, ignoring all the eyes on her.

There was an audible short burst of laugh, and Katniss didn't have to look up to know that it came from Marvel.

Eventually, the sounds of cutlery against plates filled the room, and it was evident that the argument was temporarily laid to rest.

When Katniss looked up, out of the corner of her eyes, she could see a pair of eyes still staring at her. Cato's.

BREAK

In the morning, it was Haymitch pushing a thin, single page in her face, that made her realize that her resolve last night was not actually taken seriously.

Katniss glared at him without actually taking the paper. Despite Cinna restitching the arms of her jacket, she could have lifted her hand to grab the paper from Haymitch but she didn't.

Instead, she asked, "What's that?" fully knowing what it was.

"We all have obligations, sweetheart." He shook the paper again, moving it closer to her face.

"Don't let me do this." Her voice was firm but cracked slightly at the end of her sentence.

Haymitch sighed and lowered the paper. " All you have to do is read it word for word. You don't even have to be ecstatic. Cato's performance in 2, set the expectations really low, but since Snow has it out especially for you, you might want to put some heart in it." Haymitch's hand raised again, and the paper again was in her face.

The mention of Snow made Katniss's heart rate involuntary increase, but it wasn't enough to make her reach for the paper. If anything it strengthened her resolve that she wasn't going to pretend that everything was ok, she wasn't going to play into the Game that he set up for her.

It didn't make sense why he hated her so much. After all, multiple past Tributes had committed suicide as a way to escape the Game. She never would have thought she would, but after all, she did do the quick calculations in her head - Peeta was dead, her arm was mauled by the wolves, both the emotional and physical pain was excruciating, Cato and/or Marvel would probably come after to finish her off if she was going to die, she was going to do it on her own terms - it seemed like the best logical option at the moment, and she was prepared to die, until they stopped the Game, for her, so that she didn't die in the way that she wanted -that she chose.

She didn't manage to ask Haymitch, why? If he even knew the answer.

She sighed and grabbed the paper.

---

"So you are doing the speech." It was Marvel's cheery voice that greeted her as they stood in the room of the Main Building in District 3.

It was only the three of them, as usual before they went out on the stage set up for them. The Mayor of District Three and his family already meet with them and their mentors and entourage have already gone out to stand beside the other District 3 past Victors.

Katniss could hear the crowd that awaited them through the giant metal doors.

Cato, as usual, was quiet. In his own mind and space. Distant.

"It's not like I have a choice." Katniss hoped that the sarcasm shone through her tone.

"Oh." Marvel combatted. " You always seem to make yourself have choices. After all, it's because of your choices that we all here."

Katniss' head sharply turned to look at him, and although he kept his head straight and his usual cat-like smile on his face- no doubt embodying his mask for the crowd he will have to face in mere seconds - his eyes held something darker.

Again, though the corner of her eyes, Katniss could tell that it was Cato who was looking at her.

---

The crowd was quiet, and she could see all the eyes on her as she approached the tall standing microphone.

She clutched the paper with both of her hands. She didn't read it beforehand, she didn't know what it said, and as she looked from the crowd to the paper, her eyes could not even make it past the first few greeting words.

The cameras were there and everyone kept their eyes on her expecting her to make this speech.

But, she meant it when she said she wasn't going to do the speech.

She looked over to Haymitch as he stood with the other, and he nodded at her as if to tell her to go ahead and start reading, but as her eyes lingered on him, he clearly understood and Katniss saw him sigh before shaking his head sternly, but subtle enough that if someone wasn't looking directly at him, they would not pick out his action.

She wondered what he expected her to do. After all, out of all of the people there, he knew her the best. She wondered how he expected her to protest. Perhaps he expected her to start making a rogue speech against Snow or the Capitol, or lift her hand to do the gesture she did when Rue was killed.

Katniss turned her face toward the crowd, who was now concerned along with others about her silence.

Katniss started to whimper and lowered her head. She drew every memory she had of sadness and brought to mind the few times in her life that she actually cried, hoping to mimic them in a realistic manner.

Her crying broke the silence, and for almost a minute, her crying was the only sound present, amplified by the microphone.

The paper dropped from her hands as she moved her hands towards her face to cover it, as she let out a sorrowful moan ending with soft coughs.

She heard footsteps across the stage and soon enough an arm was draped around her shoulder, turning her around and walking her towards the entrance of the Main Building. Her hand covered her face the entire time and it wasn't until she was in the room and Haymitch locked the door behind them that her hand dropped.

Her face held a few tears but not enough to make the crying that she did earlier believable if anybody saw her now. She wiped them away carelessly with the back of her hand.

Her face was crowded by Haymitch's chest and when he moved closer to hug her, Katniss was initially concerned that Haymitch didn't see through her ploy, but when his lips moved close to her ear and whispered, "Keep it up, until we get back to the train." Katniss knew that what she thought was true, no one on this tour knew her better than Haymitch.

---

The mood was seemingly sobered by Katniss crying.

The dinner with the District 3 Victor was marred, by people treating Katniss like a delicate chandelier at risk of breaking down at any moment.

Being treated as such didn't bother Katniss as much as she thought it would.

It was an interesting experience of people not treating her like the "Girl of Fire" but instead like a traumatized sixteen-year-old girl.

After all, she was both.

Katniss found out that it was Marvel that had to do an impromptu speech after she fell apart.

When they got back to the train, and during the first two days of the travel to district Four, Katniss realized that her breakdown was being talked about by most of the Capitol media.

Good. That was what she was hoping for.

Haymitch despite his advice in District 3 didn't bring up her act when they got back to the train.

Katniss expected him to.

She expected him to give her unwanted feedback like he usually did and Katniss spent more time than she would have liked analyzing whether his silence meant she was doing a great job at it, or if it meant she blatantly crossed the line that even he had stopped any effort to try to save her at this point.

She both hoped and settled on the former.

However, it was Cato who brought it up when they were alone, both of them up early for breakfast, as usual.

"Maybe, I should have just done the same thing to get out of doing my speech."

His voice was so low that Katniss wouldn't have heard what he said clearly if there were any other background noise in the room.

It was the fact that no one else was in the room, that Katniss quickly put together that he was indeed talking to her.

She looked back at him sitting at the table over her shoulders.

He wasn't looking at her. His body wasn't even turned in her direction. He was just lifting his cup towards his face as he drank the coffee or tea that it held.

This was the first thing he said to her, since the game ended. Well, truly since he tried to strangle her post-games on the aircraft back to the Capitol.

Katniss's mind was suddenly illuminated by the plot of Cato breaking down and crying in front of the crowd, like she did.

She shuddered at the absurdity of it.

I doubt that'll work for you.

The words came to her mind, but she just couldn't speak them. Whether because she did not want to confirm his suspicion of her faking it or because she did not want to continue in any way this conversation that he had started.

She already had Marvel to deal with in the realm of unwanted conversations with her fellow Victor, so instead Katniss walked out of the dining hall to her room with her breakfast.

---

They wanted another interview.

It was tradition for Victors to do interviews at certain points during the Victor's tour, but Katniss knew that her ploy in District 3 probably played a part in the sudden request for an interview.

"They need to believe that you are getting along."

Katniss was gazing down at her dinner plate, and so didn't really catch who said it, but she looked up and gazed around, hoping the annoyance was clear in her face.

Really? That's what they should be worried about?

Perhaps that was what the other two Victor's had to worry about. Putting on a realistic play that we didn't totally despise each other.

Katniss had better things to worry about.

"Really? That's it?" It was Marvel that spoke up, and Katniss took the time to glare at him through all the different scenarios and worry going through her mind.

"Well, this interview isn't really about you." Haymitch slurred, probably already half-drunk from his multiple glasses of wine, he had throughout dinner.

Marvel was staring at her mentor before his eyes moved over to her. "Right."

His face was impassive, which took Katniss aback.

She doubts Marvel could hide his facial expression if he even tried, or even tried to. His face like his mouth had no filter.

"I keep forgetting that Girl on Fire is the star in this show." He added, showing how he felt.

Katniss scoffed, rolling her eyes, before replying in a wry voice, "I'll happily hand over the spotlight to you."

"Well, if you weren't - "

Marvel didn't have time to finish before he was cut off by Cashmere,

"As much as I am enjoying this banter, Let's not do this when we are a few days out from an interview where we will try to convince the entire country that you don't hate each other."

"Why?" Cato spoke causing all eyes to land on him.

"Yeah." Marvel jumped in, dropping his fork with a thud on his plate and motioning his now free hand towards Cato. "What difference does it make if they think we are BFFs or not?"

Katniss scoffs at the thought of pretending to be friendly with either of them on national television. Pretending not to hate them she could probably pull off - maybe - but acting friendly was a whole other ballpark.

"If you don't give them a story, they will make up one." Brutus chimed in.

"This is fucking crazy." Katniss said more to herself when she heard the word 'story', but apparently, her outburst was audible to the entire table, who now had eyes on her.

She made the sudden decision to pull back her chair and leave dinner.

---

There was a knock on her door and Katniss opened the door to see Haymitch.

Finally.

"This interview is for me, isn't it?" Katniss left the door open while walking back to one of the many sofas in her giant quarters.

"What did you expect, sweetheart?" Haymitch was drunk, or at least partially, but Katniss was so in need of Haymitch telling her what to do, that she quickly dismissed asking him to leave and come back in the morning.

He dropped heavily into the sofa next to her and Katniss pulled her legs up to wrap her arms tightly around them.

There were a few moments of silence, and Katniss had to look over at her mentor to make sure that he hadn't fallen in a drunken stupor on her sofa.

He was staring at the ceiling.

Katniss sighed. "What should I do?"

Haymitch started to chuckle.

Katniss started to rethink her earlier thoughts. Maybe he was too drunk to actually have a conversation about how to not further piss off Snow.

"Are you actually going to do what I say?"

It depended on what he would say, but Katniss just shrugged.

"Say you miss Peeta, that all you were thinking was that he should have been the person saying the speech, and not you." He recommended, completely shocking Katniss. "Throw in some tears if you can."

More silence, but Katniss nodded a few minutes later, and added, "Then they will bring up the headlines between me and Cato."

Haymitch sat up on the sofa, albeit clumsily. "Exactly. You telling them how much you miss Peeta will prove how ridiculous that story was."

A sudden guilt built in Katniss. She was using Peeta to save herself, even now after his death, she was using his love for her to save herself.

She buried the feeling as swiftly as she could, not wanting it to layer on top of all her other whirlwind of emotions.

---

When they reached District 4, the news crew occupied the train.

They apparently wanted the interview before Victor's speech, and it would be live.

"I want raw, uncut, genuine responses!" The female interviewer said in her high Capitolian accent, that made Katniss want to cover her ears.

"Katniss, you sit in the middle, dear." Katniss stared at a single couch that stood in front of all the camera equipment.

Katniss made no effort to move.

"Cato on the left, Marvel on the right!" She announced soon after in her shrill voice.

When none of the Victors moved towards the sofa, the interview swiftly moved towards Katniss and grasped her hands with her cheetah-pattern tattooed hand and claw-like nails.

Her grip wasn't tight, but the claw-like nails made impressions on Katniss's arm as she was dragged to the middle of the sofa and plopped down.

Katniss was sure she was glaring bluntly at the woman, who suddenly shouted in a rushed tone, "We will be live in a minute or so, come now!" waving Marvel and Cato, who seemed hesitant but was eventually pushed and pulled towards the sofa until they were both bordering her.

The space between them was present but minuscule and Katniss abhorred the feeling of Marvel's jacket towards her bare arm and Cato's knee brushing on her legs.

"Smile!" The woman ordered in her constant cheery loud voice before sitting down in the chair a few feet in front of them and putting on a sudden smile that was a bit unnerving to Katniss.

The woman started talking, signaling that they were indeed live but Katniss' brain was so scattered that it wasn't until the women shouted "Katniss!" that she was drawn out from her inner thought, with a slight jump that caused her right hand to end up on Marvel's leg.

She quickly retracted her hand, though heavily deliberating in her mind where to put them since they were hardly any space at her sides.

She let her hands drop in her lap, and tried to turn her attention to the interviewer, but from the side of her eyes, she could see Marvel's smirk despite him looking forward into the camera.

"Yes." Katniss shook the thought from her head.

"There seems to be a lot on your mind." She smiled that unnerving smile at her.

"Ahm," Katniss froze, not knowing how to respond to that.

There was a few seconds of awkward silence, before the interviewer asked her, "How has this Victor Tour been for you?"

"Good." Katniss answered, before realizing that giving one-word answers were probably not the best way to carry out this interview. "I guess."

Another few seconds of silence.

Fuck. Katniss cursed in her head, as she kept eye contact with the interviewer who had a plastered smile on her face that differed from the confused,disappointed look in her eyes.

Her eyes suddenly shift to her left. "Cato?"

"Amazing." His tone was flat and he made no signs of expanding his answer, leading the interviewer's smile to drop significantly but not completely as her eyes moved over to Marvel.

Marvel, who didn't even need to be prodded to answer, "I am having the time of my life."

Kay Numbleberry's eyes lit up at Marvel's charming answer.

"That's great to hear!" She chimed. "Now, now, the Capitol wants to know what you three have been up to since your crowning as Victors."

Katniss made no effort to answer, instead just staring at Kay.

Neither did Cato.

It was Marvel who was left to speak again, who again easily charmed Kay into prolonging her unnerving smile.

Katniss smirked, Marvel was getting the spotlight he so craved, and she was totally alright with the interviewer ignoring her for the rest of the time, but no such luck.

After Marvel answered all of the superficial, starting questions, Kay's eyes landed back on her.

"Now, Katniss, let's talk about your break down in District 3. Truly heart-wrenching." Kay clutched the kerchief in her hand, and Katniss had to stop herself from smiling at her theatrics. "Tell us what happened."

"Ahm." Katniss shifted slightly, trying to sit more comfortably but eventually just ending up with her back leaning towards Cato's side. She hoped her shift in position would cause him to lean away, but he didn't. " I was just thinking about Peeta."

That brought on a gasp from Kay, causing Katniss to pause.

Kay seems on the verge of tears and if Katniss wasn't trying so hard to think about her next statements, she would have probably broken out of character and laughed at Kay's insincere, fake dramatics.

"He should be the one here, not me." Katniss ended.

There was silence, and Katniss couldn't tell if it was because what she said came off as profound, or if it was just awkward like all the silence before.

She actually meant what she said, despite saying it in hopes towards an agenda.

"You are still in love with Peeta?" Kay pressed.

"Yes." Katniss lied.

"So the recent headline between you and Cato?" Katniss's heart raced, despite expecting the question.

"Untrue."

Kay looked over at Cato for confirmation. "Cato?"

"No."

There was a gasp, and a feeling of being outside her body hit Katniss, and it took her a few seconds to realize that she started to laugh out loud as her mind came back to the present, and the end of her laugh started the profound, tense silence in the room.

"What?!" Katniss exclaimed.

"Are you saying that the headline instigating something between you and Katniss is true?" Kay leaned forward in her chair.

Cato shrugged, an impassive look on his face and the feeling of being outside her body hit Katniss again, and this time when she snapped out of it, her hand was bruised and in pain and she was being lifted off the couch and carried out of the room.

I fucking hate him.

"I fucking hate him."

She muttered again for probably the fifteenth time.

Her hand was in a bucket of ice, that was now mostly icy water.

"Probably not the best time to tell you this, but they insist you do the speech." That was the first thing he said to her in the last fifteen-minute.

Katniss glared at him.

"Trust me, they don't want me to do a speech right now!"

"Katniss, you are on thin ice right now and while I think about how we're going to fix this, I need you to not push it." Haymitch countered.

"I fucking hate him." Katniss murmured again.

"I know," Haymitch replied.

In between her declaration of hate, Katniss has been racking her brain for any plausible reason why Cato did what he did.

Apart from the obvious explanation, that he hated her.

Enough to lie.

Enough to make her seem like she was a liar.

---

They didn't leave them alone like they usually did before the speech, perhaps because they were concerned about another fight breaking out.

So instead there were Peacekeepers placed in the room with them, Katniss tried her best to not even look at him, but she eventually noticed the bruise around Cato's left eye that was badly covered by make-up.

Marvel was the only one sitting, and Katniss expected him to open his mouth like he usually does, but instead, he was silently sitting in the middle of the room not even smirking.

She read the speech that was written. No effort, but at least trying to get through it.

The air was tense, and Katniss wondered how much of the people in front of her watched the interview and what unfolded.

She tried to get out of dinner with the Victors at District Four but Haymitch reminded her of the thin ice she was on. " The best thing to do is pretend nothing happened. If you disappear, then they'll start believing him."

Like they didn't already.

She went and didn't talk to anyone instead glaring at him whenever she could and drinking much more than she should. She was tipsy when she went outside for some fresh air, and she had fallen half-asleep on some steps when she opened her eyes and saw Marvel sitting next to her.

He wasn't looking at her.

"Get away from me." She slurred. "The last thing I need right now is another rumor that I am fucking you too."

He laughed at her crass words.

She didn't expect him to say anything, hoping that it was just a coincidence that he was out there too and not because he wanted to talk to her.

But no such luck, apparently his earlier silence after the incident had expired and now he was back to his usual chatty self that Katniss was not in the mood for.

"You know if you'd just taken me up on my offer." He started.

"No." Was the only thing Katniss could get out. "How is this even my fault?"

He now turned his eyes towards her, and she could tell even in the semi-dark that his eyes filled with amusement, and his eyebrow was raised.

"I bet you didn't expect that from him." He held a glass in his hand, Katniss assumed liquor.

"No. I expected that from you. I expected him to try and strangle me in my sleep."

He laughed again, and it was the only thing that filled the air before the silence took over.

---

"Brutus said he didn't know about it."

"And you believe him?" Katniss exclaimed, folding her arm.

"Yes." Haymitch said, "If Brutus put him up to it, Brutus would waste no time to gloat. Modesty is not a virtue of his."

Haymitch was holding out the tiny device to her, and Katniss shook her head.

"I don't want to read it."

Haymitch sighed and retracted the device, before running a hand through his hair.

"The entire world is not against you, Katniss. We can still salvage this if you just trust me."

Katniss didn't even turn to look at him, as he left her room.

---

They wanted 'comments' from Haymitch and her.

She had nothing to say and thought it strange that Haymitch would ask her for such 'comments' instead of just making up some and telling them she said them.

"Can I say 'Cato is a fucking liar?'"

He smirked but shook his head.

Katniss shrugged and rolled her eyes.

"Why are they even asking, if they are going to just print whatever they want?" Katniss argued.

"Because what you say still matters." Haymitch leaned forward. "More than you think."

Katniss glanced at him. She has been going the extra mile to block anything from the media for the last day. She didn't want to hear the continuous discussion of what happened during the interview.

"Plus," Haymitchused the remote on the table to turn on the projector.

Katniss closed her eyes both from the brightness of the blue color lighting up the barely lit room and because she did not want to see anything from the Capitol's media.

When she opened her eyes, she noticed that it was a news article that was projected on the screen, and specifically, the part that was highlighted and that Haymitch wanted her to see was Marvel's comments.

Fellow Victor, from District One, commented that he was not aware or saw any indication of a relationship between Cato and Katniss.

Katniss leaned forwards slightly to reread the sentence.

She leaned back and shrugged, "So."

A small part of her was grateful that at least Marvel wasn't conspiring against her in this situation, but the remaining parts didn't think it wise to get her hopes up in terms of having Marvel on her side for this one or ever.

"We can use this," Haymitch announced.

Katniss's eyes quickly glazed over to him, interested in what he had to say.

"We can say it was a misunderstanding, both on the Capitol's end and Cato's."

Katniss raised an eyebrow.

"Let's just say that you were attempting to be friendly Post-Games, to let things go and make the best of the situation since you'll be stuck together for more than a month. Cato just got the wrong idea."

Katniss sat in silence for a few seconds before nodding her head. "Sure, let's go with that."

"I already did," Haymitch commented with a wink.

---

There have been no more dinners together since the incident.

Perhaps, it was to prevent any possibility of a fight, or perhaps it was just because it would have been too tense if all of us just sat there.

Either way, Katniss was glad and grateful that she didn't have to see any of her fellow Victor.

But breakfast was another system, and like always Cato was there when she entered.

She had thought that not talking to him would be the best option, that it would be the best way not to get on each other's bad side, but apparently, she was mistaken and so when she entered she felt no hesitation to announce, " You're an asshole."

He looked up at her, and Katniss could have almost seen a glint of amusement in his expression before it swiftly got replaced by his usually cold demeanor, "I hope that's not a surprise to you."

Katniss scoffed. "Why?"

He didn't respond.

"What reason do you have to do it?" Her voice was rising.

"More than I hate you?"

Katniss squinted her eyes at him.

"Yes." Before he had a chance to respond, Katniss added, "If it was just that you hated me, you would have just found a way to strangle me, or push me off the train, or slit my throat with a butter knife-"

Both Katniss and his eyes glanced down at the butter knife laying inches from his plate and hand.

"That - would just make me look like the bad guy."

Katniss stood in silence staring him down, before asking, "Whose idea was it?"

He raised one of his eyebrows.

"We both know you're not smart enough to come up with such a stint." Katniss pressed.

Cato stood up from the table, and Katniss almost smirked knowing that she managed to land a hit where it hurt.

"Maybe I should have just slit your throat, or better yet stab you just-like-I-did-Lover-Boy."

She knew it was stupid to attack him when they were alone, and that he most likely could stab her with the knife so close to his hand, but something in her blocked out all of that logic when he brought up what he did to Peeta.

She only managed to take a few footsteps before she felt hands around her upper arm holding her in place.

She thought it was Haymitch, despite the fact that Haymitch usually sleeps close to midday if she didn't go to his room to wake him up.

"I haven't even gotten my coffee yet and you two are already trying to kill each other."

She heard Marvel's voice, before glancing at him standing directly behind her, holding on to arms despite her struggling to walk forward.

"Let me go!" Katniss elbowed him in his side, and although he let out a wince of pain, he still had his hand around her arms.

Katniss managed to get one of her hand free in his distraction, but as she pulled forward, he pulled more.

"Can we just-" Marvel exclaimed.

"Let her go," Cato requested in a cold, firm voice.

Instead of doing what Cato and Katniss said, Marvel turned Katniss, both hands gripping her arms, and pushed her out of the dining room, into the hall.

Despite her resistance by dragging her feet along the floor, she and Marvel was in the hall only a few seconds later, his arm still gripping her arms, perhaps to keep her still and make sure that she didn't storm back into the room to attack Cato.

"You're acting dumb." Marvel bluntly told her, and Katniss glared at him, too angry to reply.

How the hell was she supposed to act?

"This is none of your concern." Katniss shook her arms hoping that it would make him loosen his grip.

Marvel hands were still wrapped around her arms, and he started to give her that classic 'Marvel' smirk, which always made her feel on edge as if he knew something that she didn't.

"Come to my room at around ten-ish."

Katniss looked at him as if he grew another head. Was he crazy? Was he trying to ruin her life also?

She scoffed. "You're joking right?"

Marvel rolled his eyes, and leaned back, finally letting his hand drop from her arms, before saying "You want answers right. You're definitely not going to get it from him. Might as well try your luck with me."

He winked before moving around her back into the dining area.

---

She told Haymitch, mostly because she resolved that it was best going forward to consult with Haymitch before she did anything that might get out.

She finally accepted that Haymitch was much better at playing the Capitol's game. She was never good at it, not like Peeta was.

But she also let it slip to Haymitch because she was hoping that Haymitch would accompany her to Marvel's room to 'get answers'.

Haymitch was laying on his coach, flask in hand when she told him.

When he started to shake his head, Katniss thought it was because Haymitch thought it was a trap and was going to forbid her from going to his room but soon he slurred out, "I don't think that he would want me there, honey. You should go."

Katniss's eyes widen. Was he being serious? "What if it's another trap? You honestly want me to go to the room of a guy who tried to kill me a few weeks ago?"

Haymitch shrugged. "It's not like you also didn't try to kill him. That was the Games. It's over now. You need to play nice with the other Victors. It'll make your life much easier."

Haymitch winked while talking another sipped.

Katniss considered that he might already be drunk and hence not thinking straight and that perhaps she should just have this conversation with him in the morning when he is soberer.

But Marvel said tonight, there was no guarantee that the offer would stand tomorrow night.

"I meant a trap as in another ploy by the Capitol, Snow to paint me as a liar and a whore."

Haymitch shrugged. "Maybe it is or maybe not."

Katniss glared at him. She really hated unclear answers, and right now Haymitch seems on his way to drunk land, so much so, that he couldn't even tell her what to do.

Annoyed, Katniss rolled her eyes before walking towards the door.

"You know we could have done this in a public area."

That was the first thing Katniss said when he opened his door.

He smiled at her before replying, "Because all the public areas have cameras."

Katniss took a second to consider it.

"But not the hallway?" Her head was toward him, but her eyes started to wander around the hallway that she stood.

Her observation was cut short by him reaching for her arm and pulling her into the door.

It made her uncomfortable that this was the second time in less than twenty-four hours that he was touching her.

Katniss was not keen on people touching her. The only person she usually allowed to touch her was Prim. Even, Gale hardly touched her, due to him, like her, not being a touchy-feely person.

She touched Peeta a few times during the Game, but most of it was for the camera, and if she was honest with herself also, for comfort to know that she wasn't alone and that someone was with her.

She was concerned about how comfortable Marvel seemed to just reach out and touch her, even if it is just to grip her arm for practical reasons.

She pulled away, as soon as she was inside his room, trying to put some space between them.

His room was set up similar to hers, and Haymitch - who was the only other person's room she have been to- and now she figured that perhaps all the rooms on the train had a similar outline.

"I am here for answers." Katniss declared, her eyes still roaming around the room.

"Right to the point." She heard him mutter from where he stood, a little distance for her.

She turned towards him, "As opposed to what?"

He smirked. "You should have taken me up on my first offer."

Katniss squinted her eyes in confusion, trying to think back to what first offer he was referring to.

I was thinking we could help each other out.

"Are you going to give me answers, or…" Katniss folded her arms, and glared at him.

He walked over to one of the sofas, "I kinda just did, Girl on Fire."

Katniss was annoyed at him using that name to refer to her still. It seems like it will stick to her for the rest of her life.

"Well, could you be more clearer?" Katniss pressed.

He leaned back, seeming at ease, contrasting greatly with uptightness in this situation.

"You can't expect me to do all the work for free?"

Katniss glared before slowly walking over to the sofa directly facing him. She silently hoped that this wasn't a bad idea.

"Why did Cato do what he did?"

Marvel shrugged. "Who really understands Cato?"

Ok. Maybe this was a shitty idea.

Katniss could feel her pressure rising and she considered telling him off before walking out but she would be damned if she took the great risk of coming here without getting anything in return.

"How do you know the public area had cameras?"

He leaned forward. "I thought that fact was obvious. If they bugged our room there would be much more interesting, scandalous footage to use for their drama circus." He winked before leaning back.

That made sense.

"But not the hall?"

"I doubt it, but I could be wrong."

"Why are you telling me this?"

Marvel stared at her without replying. If there was a smirk or grin on his face, Katniss would not have been concerned but it was the blank look that had her on edge as if he was in deep contemplation.

Katniss opened her mouth to ask "What he really wanted?", but she didn't have a chance to because the next second, he confessed, "Snow told me to-"

The silence in the room changed. Katniss could feel her head pounding, her heart racing, the frenzied state her being went into as a result of hearing his name.

"I tried the nice method. I asked you." He added.

"I should have realized that if he told me, then he probably told Cato, but I didn't realize it was a competition, or that I too was a player in this game."

Katniss was frozen. Too frozen to say anything, or respond.

"Honestly, I was kinda happy when the Game ended like it did. I never really cared about the glory of the Hunger Games-"

Apparently, Katniss's disbelief caused a brief shift in her frozen expression, enough for Marvel to give out a humorless chuckle, before continuing.

"- I am serious, Katniss. I cared about the money, and all the things that came with being a Victor, but I wasn't mad that I wasn't the sole Victor. Not like Cato did. He spent his entire life training for it."

Katniss's throat was dry but she still managed to croak out, "And you didn't?"

"Not like he did. I had a life outside the Academy. Anyway, I was happy also because I knew about Snow's ongoing mind games with the Victors and I taught that since he had eyes for you, that you would occupy all his time and I would be free to actually enjoy the fruit of my labor."

"Cato did what he wanted. That's 1 for him, and 0 for me and for you - actually, you might be in the negatives."

Katniss wondered how he could manage to joke in such a situation like this.

"And you are scared?" Katniss inquired.

"Snow is crazy." He whispered so softly that Katniss almost didn't hear him. "He does things not only out of spite but out of boredom, for entertainment. And he always gets his pound of flesh, and I know he is going to take some of mine, because I didn't do what he told me to do."

It was weird seeing Marvel so somber, but the next second a smile appeared on his face and he declared, "But I guess whatever happens, at least I'm not you."

And there went Katniss's concern for Marvel's somberness.

"Why are you telling me this?" Katniss repeated her question from earlier.

"We're the losers, here. I thought it might be nice to have some solidarity." He smirked.

Despite all the negative concerns and emotions filling her head, Katniss couldn't help but smile slightly at that.

---

Snow's taking Marvel's pound of flesh came in the form of a fire.

No one died, but Marvel's little sister was hurt enough to be detained at a medical facility. His home was burnt in somehow an unexplained accident.

Despite being sympathetic, most of Katniss's thoughts after the incident revolved around worrying about the extent that Snow was willing to go to punish those that displeased him.

If he did that just because Marvel didn't do something he requested despite trying, what would he do to her.

She partially knew the answer to that question, despite her effort in the past weeks to not lose sleep over it.

She didn't go to his room that night of the incident to express her sympathy.

They weren't friends, and in spite of what he told her, she wasn't sure that she could trust him.

So the first thing she asked when the door opened was "Why did you tell them that Cato and I weren't in a relationship?"

A small smile appeared on his face, and he asked "Are you?"

"If you told them that we were maybe-" She started, but could not bring herself to finish.

"Wow. Blaming the victim. How heartless of you." It was clear he was joking, at least partially.

"Are you ok?" She finally asked.

He shrugged. " I was expecting something bad to happen."

Katniss didn't know how to react, so she just stood there in silence for some seconds.

"Do you want to come in?" He said after a while, moving aside and pushing the door wider, clearing a path for her.

There was nothing else she wanted to say to him, but yet she unconsciously nodded her head and her feet moved towards space between him and the door frame.

His bed was undone and the thought came across Katniss's mind that she might have been interrupting his bedtime, causing her to freeze after he shut the door.

"I really don't have anything else to say." She confessed. Hoping that it wasn't too late to back out and leave.

"Ok." was Marvel's only reply as he walked past her to go back to laying on his bed.

She didn't know what she should do, so she just stood there, until he lifted his head and said, "You don't actually have to say anything."

The only sound that filled the room was the sound of her feet as she walked over to the empty couch.

---

It only took a brief touch on her shoulder for her to wake up.

Katniss has always been a light sleeper but the games only deepened this trait in her.

It only took her a few seconds for her to realize where she was and for her eyes to adjust to the dimly lit room, and ultimately focus on Marvel whose face was on the same level as hers as he was squatting in front of her.

"I think it might be a good idea for you to leave before you start another scandal."

She leaped up quicker than normal and glanced around his room.

She didn't mean to fall asleep on the couch but apparently, she did, perhaps due to the silence that extended after she sat down last night.

She actually adhered to Marvel's suggestion that she didn't have to say anything. Even more strange, he didn't say anything either.

He just laid in his bed and she just sat there in complete yet comfortable silence.

"Yeah." She crooked out, trying to stand up.

"You know this is not how I imagined us spending a night together."

Katniss looked down at Marvel who was still squatting down beside the sofa, and although it was clear that he was joking, Katniss still gave him an admonishing look for his innuendo.

She silently pondered how he could even manage to joke so soon after what happened yesterday, but perhaps joking was Marvel's way to cope. Perhaps that is what he needed to do to deal with all of this.

"You know you didn't answer my question last night?" Katniss changed the subject. That was one of her ways to cope, trying to escape uncomfortable situations and seeking out solutions.

He rolled his eyes and stood up. "What question?"

"You could have just cosigned what Cato said." Katniss declared, before asking a different question "Aren't you two friends?"

Marvel scoffed, before giving out a short laugh. "If you stay here and keep asking questions, you and I will have to answer questions that I think you would rather not have."

He walked towards her and gripped her shoulders.

Katniss shuttered softly from the contact but didn't pull back as he turned her around and pushed her towards the door.