Work Text:
There is a woman who lives in the woods.
No one ever talks about it. Her father has told her that only hunters know about it and that they must never tell anyone about it, ever, especially when they are inside District Twelve, not even among themselves... Or her curse will fall on all of them.
They call her the spirit of the woods, or the snow ghost. She has seen her, a few times. It seemed very real to her, especially since she lives in one of the shacks near the lake; her father always left her something on the doorstep, a squirrel or even a turkey, as a token and offering. Since his death, Katniss has been doing the same, without asking herself any questions. She taught Gale to do it too, and he too honors the Hunters' pact.
This is how it works.
She never asks questions, never gives herself answers. Sometimes she meets her - which is why she never fires his arrow at the first, slightest sound - and she just looks at her and smiles; she, a mysterious woman, always wrapped in the same orange shawl as she walks through the woods.
They recognised each other, for a moment, and then went their separate ways. They never even say hi.
She has no idea what her voice sounds like, because she never speaks.
That's why the surprise is so distracting the first time she does. It is still a small flicker, nothing too strong in the sea of despair that has assailed her.
Katniss ran into the woods to try to escape the bitter reality. To the nightmare that repeats itself. To the story that has no end, no end... It will never end, not until she dies.
"What's going on?" asks the Snow Ghost and Katniss looks up, still crouched in the grass, and the woman's presence interrupts her sobs for a moment.
"P-President Snow," she murmurs, "has announced the rules f-for the thirtieth Hunger Games”.
Every fifteen years there is a special edition of those hellish games. The first one wanted twice as many tributes from each District and that's where Haymitch, the first Mentor from District Twelve, won.
This year... This year, instead, they want the Tributes to be chosen from existing Winners.
Her.
President Snow wants her back in that arena.
Because she defied Capitol City with her berry stunt, because she risked leaving Panem without its precious Winner. Because she dared to rebel.
Not to die. To save Peeta's life as well.
And now President Snow wants revenge on her.
She tells her, to the spirit of the woods. She crouches in front of her, watching her. She tells her about her experience in the Hunger Games - and the words slip from her mouth, in a confused bubble, interspersed with sobs and tears.
Her little sister Prim, whose place she took. Rue, whom she had failed to save. The horror of killing to survive. The rules that kept changing. The hybrids with the eyes of the dead Tributes.
Peeta.
Peeta, the boy with the bread.
Peeta, whom she had saved, drawing the hatred of President Snow.
The snow ghost listens, attentive. Then, when nothing more remains, when only the wind ruffles their hair, the woman leans towards her and embraces her.
"It will be all right," she whispers, stroking her back as she bursts into tears again, "It will be all right."
Katniss desperately wants to believe it.
***
She stands on the stage, in the square. She watches the crowd with bleary eyes, but with her head held high.
Effie, in the middle of the stage, in front of the microphone, looks turned off. So strange… So unusual for her.
She smiles, but her eyes glisten with restrained tears.
"The Female Tribute for District Twelve is... Katniss Everdeen."
Katniss remains impassive, observing the crowd. She has no intention of showing weakness. She is not going to cry or make a scene.
All she has left is her dignity.
"I volunteer!"
A distant voice rips through the sky. The crowd stirs, murmuring.
Katniss blinks, trying to see into the crowd, to understand... People turn, move.
The crowd opens up and there she is.
The snow ghost.
She wears a colorful flounced dress, and has the ubiquitous orange shawl draped over her. She smiles, cheerful - it's such a strong set of contrasts that Katniss begins to think it's all a hallucination.
“Ah…” murmurs Effie into the microphone, trying to recover from the paralysis that has seized everyone. The woman, meanwhile, strides towards the stage, and almost seems to leap "I'm sorry but, um, well, for this edition you're only allowed to draw among the previous Winners..."
The woman reached the stage and climbed on top. She does a pirouette and breaks into a huge grin.
"I know," she replies, "Indeed, I am. Lucy Gray Baird, winner of the Tenth Hunger Games."
Okay, maybe she's already dead.
Maybe she ate something weird that's giving her hallucinations, Katniss thinks. Because this can't be real life.
Everyone in District Twelve knows that someone called Lucy Gray Baird won an edition; Mayor Lipp says her name every year before the Reaping. But nobody... Nobody, ever...
Nobody knew what happened to the girl. For better or worse, the whole district thought she was dead.
Lucy Gray, the spirit of the woods? Laughing and pirouetting in her multi-coloured skirt?
Effie is speechless, as are they all.
The woman - Lucy Gray? - approaches Mayor Lipp, who has gone pale… As if, indeed, he has seen a ghost.
Her expression fades; now she no longer looks amused. She is serious, as she stares at the mayor with her head held high.
“I guess the mayor can confirm my identity,” she announces, dryly.
The man's lower lip trembles. Several emotions pass behind his eyes - anger? Fear? - and then he, without a word, nods.
Lucy Gray, now that her identity has been confirmed, smiles and claps her hands once. She pirouettes again and jumps, until she is beside her. She grabs her by the arm and squeezes her, while she is too shocked to react.
"Great!" she chirps "Katniss, does this mean you'll be my Mentor this year?"
She winks at her and bursts out laughing.
Katniss doesn't know what to think.
Crazy.
She's completely crazy.
Effie coughs and recovers. She goes to the second bowl and pulls out the second name.
“Good... Good. The male tribute for District Twelve is... Haymitch Abernathy.”
Katniss lifts her gaze to Peeta. He too is open-mouthed, he too doesn't know what to think.
Please, no , she thinks, with all his might.
Don't do anything stupid.
We are safe.
We are both safe.
She still can't help despairing over that selfish thought... But she can't help it.
The only thing that matters is that Peeta survives.
And that's probably the same thing Haymitch thinks too. He pats Peeta on the arm, smiles, and then staggers towards Effie.
"Well!" she exclaims, still not quite recovered from her surprise "Good luck! May the odds be in your favor!"
The Peacekeepers arrive and drag them away. Not into the courthouse, but already beyond, towards the station.
"What about greetings?" exclaims Katniss, panicked.
"No greetings this year," one of the Peacekeepers answers her. He is mournful, almost sorry. His grip on her arm is not strong.
"Hello!" shouts Katniss, turning back to her family.
When she calms down enough to become present again, she sees that none of the Peacekeepers are pushing Lucy Gray. Several of them are exchanging amused glances… Smiling, even.
They are the older ones. The more grown-up ones.
Someone who knew her when she still lived in the District.
She trots forward, always smiling, as if she has no thought in the world.
They board the train.
***
Lucy Gray is eating bread pudding with her hands, to the horror of Effie, who seems too surprised to say anything anyway. She is eating it with such passion that it stains her cheeks, and Lucy Gray sticks and fingers in her mouth and even makes little moans of pleasure.
Katniss is sitting on one of the small sofas, next to Peeta, watching her. Haymitch is on one of the armchairs and is already drinking. Effie is standing, completely paralyzed, as Lucy Gray finishes her meal.
"Wonderful," the woman finally exclaims, still smiling - why does she look so damn cheerful?! "Did you always get such treatment, in your Hunger Games?"
Katniss merely stares at her. Haymitch takes another sip. Effie recoils as her professionalism somehow breaks through.
"All Tributes from all Districts ride the best trains and eat the best food in Capitol City," she replies, "Though I hear only Twelve is allowed desserts."
Lucy Gray arches her eyebrows.
"Really?" she asks, then bursts out laughing heartily "How romantic" she finally comments, wiping her eyes of the tears that have sprung up, and smiling back with a sly light in her gaze.
"Wasn't your Hunger Games like that?" asks Peeta, softly. Katniss grabs his hand and squeezes it, not taking her eyes off Lucy Gray. She doesn't even know why she did it, but Peeta returns the squeeze and immediately she feels calmer.
Lucy Gray looks at him, lifting her chin with an air of feigned superiority.
“My boy, we were thrown into a cattle wagon. All together, all the Tributes from all the Districts. We arrived at the Capital and were dumped in the monkey cage at the zoo and no one thought to feed us.”
Katniss watches her, silently. She's joking, right? Of course she's joking. It doesn't make any sense.
Haymitch bursts out laughing.
“I won five years after you and it wasn't like that,” he says, teasing her.
“I can tell you didn't watch my Games,” she replies, seraphic.
"Nobody ever looked at them. Not until they were actually made mandatory. With mine, I think. It was a big event."
Lucy Gray shrugs her shoulders.
"Yeah, I can imagine that," she replies, quietly, "But if your games were made a certain way, it's because my games set the seeds. You know. They were an experiment. It was the first year we had interviews, sponsors... Mentors" her eyes light up on the last word, as if laughing at a secret joke.
It is that, the shadow of that laugh, that breaks Katniss' silence.
She cannot bear it any longer. Lucy Gray looks so happy she feels like choking her.
"They're sending you to die in an arena anyway," she spits out, "What does it matter if you get to eat some sweets, or if they let you sleep in a nice flat first? What's there to be so happy and cheerful about?!"
Maybe it came out harder than it was supposed to. Oh well, whatever. Katniss stares at the woman with her head held high and expects something .
Lucy Gray brings her attention to her. She smiles, always calm and light.
“I will not die in that arena,” she announces, serene, as if simply stating a fact.
Haymitch bursts out laughing, risking spilling what little remains in his glass.
"Excuse me" he then tells her "I can understand if you think I'm easy prey... I mean. I'm an alcoholic, abstinence will probably kill me before a Tribute. But have you seen the others ?"
Lucy Gray just stares at him for a few seconds without answering, still with that smirk of superiority.
"It doesn't matter who the others are," she finally replies, "I have something they don't have."
She crosses her legs and arms and lets herself fall back better on the back of the chair, sly and satisfied.
Katniss opens and closes her mouth several times.
"... Even if you had the most scabrous secret of President Snow himself," she says finally, "You can't blackmail anyone. He will kill you. He doesn't even need an excuse, he'll just throw you in the arena."
Lucy Gray widens her smile.
“Blackmail? Oh, no, I have no use for the president's scabrous secrets ” she replies, genuinely amused, leaning towards her “I have something better. Much more valuable,” she winks at her again. Peeta squeezes her hand, restraining her from answering.
Lucy Gray lets herself fall back into the chair again.
“Believe me, it is far easier for the Hunger Games to be canceled in its entirety than for me to die in that arena,” she concludes, still with the confidence of someone who knows she is stating an established fact.
Haymitch bursts out laughing again.
"If you have this power, why haven't you used it before?" asks Katniss, shaking with anger "Why now?"
Lucy Gray licks her lips and tilts her head.
"... It wasn't ripe yet" she replies "Actually, I was still looking for the right Katniss in the woods" she adds, widening her smile " Ooooh this is fun. This is really funny. A sign from the stars so obvious that you just couldn't ignore it".
"You're crazy," Katniss finally comments.
She really doesn't know what to think.
"Anyway, Lucy Gray, where did you spring from?" asks Haymitch, intrigued and amused "How is it that you've shirked all your Mentor duties until now?"
Lucy Gray shrugs her shoulders.
"I used to live in the woods," she replies, "Katniss, here, can confirm."
"The hunters called her the spirit of the woods, or the snow ghost" she is forced to say, grudgingly.
Lucy Gray chuckles.
"Very appropriate," she replies, "Do you know? My name comes from a ballad. It's about a little girl who got lost in a blizzard and became a ghost. Only footprints remain in the snow."
"But why did you live in the woods?" insists Haymitch "Why not in the District?"
Lucy Gray looks up for a moment. For one small moment she seems to carry far more years on her shoulders than she has - and than she shows, which is even less.
Then he turns back to Haymitch, quiet.
"Mayor Lipp thinks I was involved in the murder of his daughter and her boyfriend" he replies "Because, in fact, her boyfriend was my ex -boyfriend. And Mayfair got her father to send me into the Hunger Games the first time, to get rid of me" she continues, as if nothing was wrong "I guess that's why you now have an official Capitol City master of ceremonies drawing names, and it's no longer done by the people of the Districts" she concludes, eyeing Effie, who says nothing but sits in one of the vacant chairs.
One must never speak of the spirit of the woods within the District, never; only the hunters know it, and even they are not allowed to speak of it...
Now a few things make sense.
It was done to prevent word from reaching the mayor's ears.
"And did you do that?" asks Haymitch, pouring himself another glass before slumping back uncomfortably in his chair “Did you kill the mayor's daughter and the boy? I remember, back in the day, it turned the whole district upside down. There were Peacekeepers everywhere, hunting for weapons'.”
Lucy Gray looks at him, as serious as she has never been until now.
"No," she replies, "But the mayor was convinced. He lurked in front of my house for days, putting the fear of the devil on me. That's why I decided to run away to the woods" Lucy Gray also helps herself to a drink, water though. She swallows and then smiles again "My family covered for me. I guess people were convinced that the mayor had killed me secretly, discreetly, maybe. Rumors ran wild. But the important thing was the fact that I was missing, so Lipp was able to find his peace."
Lucy Gray swirls her glass, watching small ripples of water crash against the glass.
"So," Katniss comments, "you disappeared for twenty years. You broke the rules of the Hunger Games, refusing to fulfill your role as Mentor in the games. And you are convinced you will survive this edition?"
Lucy Gray smiles again, amused.
"Well, you just watch me do it, sweetheart."
***
They get off the train greeted by the usual crowd of screaming fans.
Peeta smiles and waves, as always comfortable in the spotlight.
The people, however, are not just looking at them this time.
"Lucy Gray!" can be heard shouting, in the crowd "Lucy Gray, is that really you?!"
Lucy Gray smiles and pirouettes, showing off her multi-coloured skirt.
"Lucy Gray, sing us a song!"
Lucy Gray laughs.
Then she starts singing for real.
" Everyone's born as clean as a whistle
As fresh as a daisy
And not a bit crazy "
She has a heavenly voice.
Katniss knows that Peeta considers her a good singer, but this... This is like her father's way of singing.
The crowd covered much of his song with their enthusiasm, and they kept going anyway.
" This world is dark,
This world is scary,
I've taken some hits, so
No wonder I'm wary "
They almost reached the entrance to the dungeon where the stylists would take care of them.
" It's why
I trust you... "
They disappear behind the door and the sounds die down. Lucy Gray stops singing.
They advance down a long corridor to the main room, and there....
"Cinna!" exclaims Katniss, throwing herself into his arms. Cinna returns the squeeze, but there is something strange about his embrace.
He hesitates.
"Cinna, where are the others?" asks Katniss, pulling away from him and looking around.
"There's a little change of plans," he tells her, nervously, "I've come to get you. Let's go up to the lobby."
In silence, they go up. Everyone is casting worried glances at each other, not daring to speak... Everyone except Lucy Gray, who smiles, quiet.
They go out into the main hall, where the other Tributes and stylists are already waiting. They are all murmuring among themselves, nervous. There are Peacekeepers leaning against the wall, keeping an eye on the situation, but they are all tense and perplexed nonetheless.
"Lucy Gray!" someone exclaims.
A woman runs towards them. A stylist. Katniss knows her by sight.
Lucy Gray looks puzzled. She squints her eyes, studying the woman.
"Is it really you?!" she exclaims, tears in her eyes "It's me, Tigris!"
Something clicks in Lucy Gray because she opens her mouth wide; then, with a laugh, she throws herself into Tigris's arms.
Katniss, like the others, just stares at the two women, puzzled.
“You're still wearing your mother's dress,” Tigris then tells her, pulling away from her and watching her.
Lucy Gray smiles and nods, pirouetting for her.
"Do you know?" she says finally, turning to them "During my Games, we had no stylists. Tigris, however, had offered to wash my dress before they threw me into the arena! I never thanked you, Tigris."
Tigris put her hands together in front of her face and looked so happy she was moved.
"Oh, Lucy Gray," she exclaims, thrilled.
Someone makes an announcement, interrupting their moment.
"The Tributes and their team please make your way to their assigned flats. The Tributes and their team..."
Another murmur of confusion shakes them all. Someone starts to advance towards the lifts.
Tigris turns towards her staff for a second - she is the District Four stylist - and then, after a silent communication, turns back to them.
“I'm coming with you,” she announces.
Lucy Gray smiles.
They get in line and then, somehow, they all manage to get into one lift, squeezing in on each other.
"So," asks Lucy Gray, as they go up, "Tigris! How's life here in the Capital?"
Tigris waits a moment before answering her.
"It sucks" she finally murmurs "The Districts hate us, the Hunger Games still exist" Katniss can't turn around but she seriously wishes she could in order to look Tigris in the face, who is saying such serious things as if they were nothing. Isn't she afraid that someone will report her? That President Snow will take action?! " He is been on the verge of a mental breakdown ever since" Tigris adds, in a low voice "Oh, Lucy Gray, I'm glad you're here!"
The lift doors open and everyone exits, relieved to be able to breathe again, walking through the lobby to find themselves in the main hall.
Katniss looks around, and sees that everyone is as puzzled and terrified as she is.
Lucy Gray, indifferent, strides towards the windows, looking around.
Tigris crosses her arms and smiles.
"Do you know?" she tells her, as the stylists and Effie sit on the sofas. Cinna turns on the TV at minimum volume, observing Caesar Flickerman arguing with someone about this abnormal delay in the preparation of the Tributes “This was our house”.
Lucy Gray turns to her, surprised.
" This? " she asks, "You mean, the penthouse?"
Tigris smiles, slyly.
"Oh, of course it wasn't like that " she replies, amused " It's been renovated. But yes, it's my childhood home."
Lucy Gray bursts out laughing.
"The penthouse, for District Twelve?" she finally asks "How romantic".
Tigris chuckles as well. Katniss and the others shift their gaze between them. They all look like cats mesmerized by a little light on the wall.
"That's exactly the comment I made. And we haven't spoken since."
Lucy Gray grins.
What on earth are they talking about?! thinks Katniss, in despair.
Before she can ask, however, Haymitch intervenes. He has poured himself yet another drink while the two women are talking and now sinks into one of the armchairs.
"So, what now?" he asks, to no one in particular.
Katniss is still standing, standing in the middle of the living room. Peeta is beside her, their hands touching.
Cinna is by the tv, remote control in hand, nervous.
Tigris is a few steps from the doorway and Lucy Gray is still walking around the room, looking around curiously.
“We'll wait,” she replies, smiling at Haymitch's turn.
Well, what else is there to do?
They wait.
***
The front door opens with a crash, crashing against the wall and making a hellish noise.
From behind it, in the general silence, emerges President Snow. He is... Pissed off doesn't quite convey the idea. Foaming with rage.
Katniss does not even have time to be afraid. President Snow, tailed by some of his staff, marches purposefully to a halt a few steps away from Lucy Gray Baird.
"What the heck do you think you are doing?!" he exclaims, clenching his fists and giving her a murderous look.
Lucy Gray, for her part, seems completely indifferent to his fury. She even raises her chin, with a grimace of disappointment and superiority.
“Rude,” she tells him.
Katniss jerks, as does the president.
Does Lucy Gray have no survival instinct?
"What?!" asks the president, widening his eyes.
Lucy Gray crosses her hands under her breasts.
“I said: rude. Is that any way to say hello? What happened to your much-vaunted manners?”
President Snow gasps for a few moments. Finally another twinge of anger pervades him from head to toe and he shoots a dirty look at Lucy Gray.
She does not give up.
Eventually, with an irritated snort, President Snow marches to one of the sideboards, where a vase filled with white roses decorates the room. He pulls one out, turns back. He closes his eyes for a second and when he opens them again he looks like a different person.
He is still furious, this Katniss can see. His smile is false and does not reach her eyes, and he extends the rose towards Lucy Gray.
“Welcome to the capital,” he tells her, in a tone of mock enthusiasm that smacks of teasing.
Lucy Gray lifts the corners of her lips in an amused smile. She unties the arms she had crossed between them and stretches out a hand, dipping two fingers into the flower and plucking off a petal. Then, slowly, staring the president in the eyes, she brings the petal to her mouth and places it on her tongue.
She swallows.
"It always tastes like bed time," she comments, amused.
"Good!" replies the president, still with that falsely pissed-off smile "So, now, Lucy Gray... What the heck are you doing here?! "
Lucy Gray picks up the rose and turns it over in her hands, looking at it, her air almost indifferent.
“I play by your rules,” she replies at last.
Katniss can see President Snow's nostrils flare, now the fake smile entirely gone as fury returns to invade him.
"Why?" he asks her, his voice cracking.
Lucy Gray looks up at him again. With the hand in which she holds the rose he points at her , extending her arm.
Katniss would like to go and hide somewhere, but can do nothing but watch in horror as the two of them square off, serious.
“Looks like some Katniss has ripened,' Lucy Gray finally replies, and sneers, sarcastically.
President Snow turns his head for a moment to look at her, and then returns his attention to Lucy Gray.
“It's not funny,” he replies to her, his voice low and rough.
"I wasn't about to ignore another star sign," she replies, "Not when it's so blatant."
For a moment, the two simply stare at each other.
Katniss feels increasingly confused and feels that everyone, for better or worse, is waiting. As if they are holding their breath.
"Where have you been, Lucy Gray?" asks President Snow finally, with a strangely intense note in the tone of his voice.
"Exactly the same place where I left you," she replies. With her hands she snaps the stem of the rose and then slips it into her hair. President Snow looks at her squinting, as if he is studying her "I never really broke my promise. It was just a trick, and you know it."
"I see," he replies, lowering his gaze for a moment, to her shoulders, before returning it to her eyes "Why?"
Lucy Gray tilts her head slightly and stares at him.
"That's not the most important question," Lucy Gray replies, advancing a step "No, the most important question is another one; one I have to ask you."
Katniss sees President Snow turn pale.
Lucy Gray smiles, but she is not amused. She is angry and confident.
"But first, let me do a little recap for our unwitting witnesses" she trills, the light tone despite the tension being immense can be felt in all its suffocating weight "The last time my name was called and Panem tried to kill me in an arena, you have" Lucy Gray raises a clenched fist and, as she lists the points, keeps count with her fingers "Provided me with food so I wouldn't starve, violated school rules so I wouldn't starve, manipulated Dr. Gaul's ass to implement sponsors so you would have a way to send food and water to the arena so I wouldn't starve, gave me one of the most precious family heirlooms you had in the hopes that I would use it to cheat and not die in the arena, figured out Dr. Gaul's dirty trick with the mutts and cheated yourself outright to keep me from dying in the arena, got caught cheating after I won, you were expelled, you lost your scholarship, you lost your diploma, you lost your fucking house, you were sent off to be a soldier among the Peacekeepers, and you begged to end up in the Twelve so that you'd have the hope of ever seeing me again to assure you that yes, I was alive, thank you very much, I was alive, and they had sent me home. Am I forgetting something?"
What?!
President Snow clenched his fists and said nothing as Lucy Gray finished her list, but his fury grew from word to word. His nostrils flared. He foams with rage, still. At the end, he does not respond.
And Katniss suddenly feels empty and spent. Knocked out, defeated, dead and risen, yes, because nothing makes sense anymore.
What did she just hear?!
Peeta grabs her hand. Katniss can't even look at him, because her gaze is glued on President Snow and Lucy Gray.
"So, Coriolanus ," Lucy Gray continues, lifting her chin and smiling with superiority, "What will you do, now, to keep me from dying in that arena?" she asks, coldly, "What price are you willing to pay?"
President Snow began to tremble.
"Indeed, what price are you willing to pay so that no one dies in that arena again?" urges Lucy Gray again.
Finally, the president replies, after inhaling deeply over and over again to try to calm himself.
"Do you realize," he hisses, "what you are asking me to do?"
Lucy Gray looks at him for a long moment; the smile fades, and she is as serious as ever.
"It seemed a pretty clear sign to me" she replies, in a whisper "Katniss. And no promises really broken. No need to scream. No need to kill the Mockingjays" Katniss jerks at those words. President Snow continues to shake and stare at Lucy Gray. He looks - is it possible? - that he even has glazed eyes “The stars have forgiven us, Coryo. I have forgiven you. I am here, now. And you, what will you do?”
A tear has indeed escaped President Snow's control.
Katniss watches him, almost bewitched. She has spent so long being afraid of him that she never thought the day would come when she would see him cry.
It is absurd. Unbelievable.
Impossible.
Lucy Gray raises a finger and touches his cheek; she wipes away the tear and then brings it to her lips, tasting it.
It is perhaps why President Snow reacts.
"The Hunger Games are canceled," he announces, his voice hoarse.
Someone lets out a shout; one of his aides.
"Mr President, if..."
"Mr. President, how..."
Other aides begin to speak, confused and intimidated.
President Snow turns to them, stymied.
"Well?!" he exclaims "Haven't you heard?! Are you all incompetent?! There will be no Hunger Games! Not this year, not next year, not ever! Go and warn those in charge before I fire you all!"
Katniss looks away from him only to fix her gaze on Lucy Gray and sees that the woman is smiling again, cheerful and cunning, and when she notices her gaze she gives her yet another wink.
It is then that the truth takes root inside her.
The Hunger Games.
Deleted.
Forever.
Someone leaves the flat, heading for the hall. The others stand staring at the president, terrified, no longer daring to protest.
He closes his eyes and presses his hands to his temples, inhaling deeply.
"Lucy Gray" he finally says, still with his eyes closed, before turning to her " I guess we'll have to find a way to have a private cha..."
Before he can finish speaking, however, Lucy Gray has already thrown her arms around his neck. She grabbed him by the hair, holding him still, to press her lips to his.
For a moment everything stands still, frozen.
Then President Snow pulls her close and kisses her back. In a way that Katniss, frankly, did not think humanly possible.
President Snow kisses her as if he were starving .
Twenty years have passed.
It is a thought that suddenly hits her.
Twenty years have passed since the games of Lucy Gray Baird. Twenty years since Lucy Gray disappeared in the woods.
Twenty years.
And the two of them are kissing like hungry kids.
Haymitch bursts out laughing. Tigris lets out a cough.
The kissing stops abruptly, perhaps because President Snow is now fully aware that he has made a spectacle of himself in front of an unknown number of people.
And then, as if that wasn't already an unexpected scene, he looks around and blushes to the tip of his hair.
"Oh, good god" Katniss hears Peeta murmur.
Indeed.
"Um, I don't know how to tell you this" Cinna interjects "But, um, Caesar Flickerman is on his way here".
They all turn to the tv. Someone has made the announcement of the end of the Hunger Games and Caesar has not taken it well at all. He got himself a cameraman, a microphone, and walked out of his studio, determined to find out the truth.
"Sources tell us that President Snow is in the penthouse..." he's telling the camera, as he enters the lift "He owes us an explanation, don't he, Capitol City? Let's go! Let's go find out the truth!"
President Snow sighs, distraught. Lucy Gray slides out of his arms and smiles. She taps a finger against his nose, leaving him confused.
"Leave it to me."
***
Caesar Flickerman bursts into the room with his usual reporter's smile and microphone already extended.
"President Snow!" he exclaims, searching him with his eyes "You owe us an explanation!"
Lucy Gray trots towards him, smiling.
"Hello!" she exclaims "I am Lucy Gray Baird. Your name is Flickerman... Are you related to Lucretius Lucky Flickerman?"
Caesar is taken aback, but his professionalism does not allow him to make a fool of himself on tv. He smiles, beaming.
"Of course I do! And how do you know my old dad?"
Lucy Gray giggles and brings her hand to her mouth.
"Oh, well, you know... He used to host the Games when I won. In fact, he was the first host of the Games! He interviewed me personally."
Caesar, now, seems genuinely interested.
"Oh, I know, my father had an amazing career," he answers her, "But I confess, when we saw the Reaping I asked him about you. And he wouldn't tell me anything! Does that seem normal to you?"
" Aaaah , but you see, if he had told you everything, where would have been the surprise? Wasn't it better to hear my story from me?"
Caesar sighs, dramatically.
"That's exactly what I would have wanted!" he replies "And now it looks like I won't be able to interview you!"
Lucy Gray waves him closer.
"In my opinion" she replies to him, whispering into the microphone "All is not lost. We can make an exception to the rule and you can interview me here, what do you say?" she winks at the camera, complicit.
Caesar casts a glance at President Snow, who merely stares at them with a neutral expression.
"Well, I'd say take advantage while you can. Lucy Gray Baird, I've been looking for traces of your Games, but it seems not a single copy exists anymore."
"Ah, what a bummer," she commented, putting her hands on her hips, "My Games were very interesting. Very... Innovative."
"Really? Can you tell us more?"
"Of course."
Lucy Gray breaks into a huge grin, and does a pirouette.
"That year the Big Bosses had decided to try something different: make the Hunger Games a show. They made it a school project for Academy students, who were supposed to make suggestions... And mentor the tributes."
"Really?" comments Caesar "That sounds extremely fascinating".
"It is, Cesar" she replies, waving a hand “It's because of my games that the Hunger Games are now what they are... Well, what they were. Fancy trains and treats, and even a whole flat to rest in? Ah, Cesar, if you only knew. We Tributes, back in the day, were dumped in the monkey cage, in the zoo. Surely someone still remembers that”.
Caesar seems to be speechless. Lucy Gray chuckles.
"It is thanks to my games, and my amazing Mentor, that sponsors and bets have been implemented... Aids to be had in the arena. And I also think that, after me, this work has continued. Victory Villages? Cash prizes? They had never been seen before."
"... Wow" Caesar finally comments "Did your Mentor really do all this?"
"Of course he did" Lucy Gray replies "I think you know him" she adds, in a low voice, with another wink at the camera "Can I introduce you to him?"
Caesar nods. Lucy Gray pirouettes again and brings herself next to President Snow, who is still watching neutrally. She squeezes him around the waist... She clings to him.
"Coriolanus Snow" she exclaims, cheerfully "I certainly got the icing cake. It is thanks to him that I am still alive... That I won."
Caesar is now staring open-mouthed at the president. His professionalism fails in the face of that revelation.
President Snow sneers and lays a hand on Lucy Gray's shoulder. He is, at the same time, amused and irritated by the whole situation.
"I would not have allowed her to die in the arena after all the trouble I went to save her the first time," he comments.
"You see, Caesar, I asked him. To stop with the Games, that is. I must confess, I never liked them."
Caesar slides his gaze from one to the other, still lost. President Snow slid his hand from Lucy Gray's shoulder to her waist. She rested her head on his shoulder and smiled, serene, while he had a neutral expression again.
"But... I, that is, we..." stammered Caesar finally "What are we going to do now?"
President Snow slips his free hand into a pocket and pulls out a small object, which he then throws towards Caesar. He catches it in the air, confused.
"It's the only existing copy of the Tenth Hunger Games" he tells him "Uncensored" he adds "For this year, I think a replay might not be too bad. Enjoy."
Tigris decides to step forward at that moment.
"I can come to the studio and expose all the background" he says "Maybe we can even find some former classmates of Coriolanus, who participated in the project?"
Caesar quickly recomposes himself.
"Tigris? The famous Games stylist? Forgive me, aren't you the stylist of the Four? What are you doing here? What background are you talking about?"
Tigris laughs.
"Haven't you done your homework, Caesar Flickerman?" he blushes, embarrassed "Tigris is both my stage name and my real name. I wonder why, though, everyone forgets my surname. I am Tigris Snow, cousin of our beloved president, and I was living with him and our grandmother when he was entrusted with taking care of Lucy Gray Baird."
The embarrassment passes quickly as Caesar's eyes light up.
"What an amazing opportunity!" he exclaims "I'm sure Panem will want to know all about our president's past!"
Tigris takes Caesar under the arm and drags him towards the entrance. The cameraman follows them.
They finally leave, leaving everyone in total silence.
Katniss is still processing. President Snow turns to Lucy Gray and lifts her up and she, wincing in surprise, hangs on his shoulder.
"Time to speak privately , Lucy Gray," he announces, before turning and heading for the bedrooms.
"Wait!" exclaims Effie, standing up, confused.
Surely it's the shock. Otherwise Katniss cannot explain how she dared interrupt the president. And, judging by the annoyed look he gives her, he's wondering too.
"... And what should we do?" asks Effie, lost.
President Snow raised his eyebrows. Lucy Gray, over his shoulder, turned to him and began stroking his hair and leaving little kisses on his temple and cheek.
"Enjoy the tenth Hunger Games and my cousin's gossip" the president replied, trying to remain impassive but unable to do anything about the blush that coloured his cheeks " Do not disturb " he added, before disappearing behind the door to the rooms and slamming it behind him.
Haymitch bursts out laughing again.
"... They haven't gone to talk , have they?" comments Cinna, trying not to burst out laughing in turn, his face distorted by a gigantic smile.
Katniss feels herself blushing, uncomfortable. Peeta is still holding her hand and she can't think about... The President... And Lucy Gray...
My God. They called her the snow ghost.
Peeta sighs, beside her. He walks over to one of the small sofas and she follows him, her hand still entwined with his. They sit, next to each other, as on the tv Caesar re-enters the studio, with Tigris accompanying him.
Haymitch chuckles again.
" Starcrossed lover " he comments, pouring himself another glass "No wonder the president was so pissed" even the few remaining members of President Snow's staff find where to sit, confused and bewildered "Nothing new, eh? Peeta? Katniss?"
Katniss jerks when Haymitch calls her name.
He can't stop giggling.
"Couldn't handle your happy ending," he concludes, before downing his glass with one gulp.
Katniss thinks back to that winter. When President Snow had come to her house, threatening her.
Pissed off because it was all an act, an act for the cameras, to get out of the game alive.
As if it was a personal affront that she didn't love her blond boy with the bread.
Katniss looks up at Peeta. He is still shaking her hand and looking towards the tv, but when he feels her gaze he turns to her and smiles. He blushes a little, embarrassed, and his stomach does a half somersault.
But is it really? A fake?
Katniss sighs and shakes her head.
No Hunger Games. Ever.
She and Peeta are alive. They will remain so, for a long time. President Snow has found his lost love, they are probably both engaged in activities a little more eventful than just talking right now, only a few walls away... And she, well, she has all the time in the world to reflect on her feelings.
Katniss rests her head on Peeta's shoulder. He lets go of her hand only to pass his arm behind her and pull her close, sending little electric shocks throughout her body, originating from the hot spot where he touches her waist.
Katniss closes her eyes for a second, while on tv several boys are being badly dumped in the monkey cage at the zoo.
Yes.
She has all the time in the world.