Chapter Text
Sadie stood in the dark, trying to force herself to stay perfectly still so as not to mess up her elaborate hairdo, smudge any of her makeup, or worse yet, damage the elaborate silvery blue dress Fay had made for the occasion. It was the most beautiful thing she’d ever seen- and it was hers. It would be her armor for what Odysseus had carefully warned her might be the hardest night of her life.
This seemed unlikely to her. After all, she’d just won the Hunger Games. After two weeks of fighting for her life (and a week before that trying to make herself noteworthy enough to have a chance in spite of her age and terrible first impression), how could any stupid interview be that harrowing? All she had to do was not ruin the stylists’ work and chat with a man paid to make her look good on camera for a couple hours, right?
Admittedly, the waiting was terrible. Staying perfectly still in the dark, not knowing when precisely she would be announced and unable to do anything to pass the time or distract herself wasn’t exactly her idea of fun. But it wouldn’t be long. She knew that it couldn’t be, because the whole night was about her. Nothing could truly get started until she was onstage.
It would be any minute now. For sure.
“Welcome, welcome Panem!” Caesar Flickerman announced to thunderous applause. She couldn’t peek out to see him, but she could hear his voice on the other side of the curtain- and if she paid close attention, she could hear the faint sound of his footsteps on the stage just a couple feet away from her.
His voice was, as always, bright and friendly. Inviting, even. She knew why everyone in the audience hung on his every word. Honestly, she still hung on his every word. There was something magnetic about the man. When he smiled at her, she really believed he was her best friend in the universe. It wasn’t just her, either. Everyone seemed to respond that way. Other Tributes, other Victors (and how weird was it to think of herself as a Victor, still?), Escorts… even President Snow seemed to be drawn in. Sadie knew it was his job- but she also knew that even though it was an act, he would still take care of her as best he could. That was also part of his job.
“I know I say this every year, but what an exciting Hunger Games, right? We’ve laughed together, cried together… This year, I think we may have all gained a new phobia or two together, am I right?”
Sadie had to stay silent, but a tiny snort escaped her. She hadn’t been sure how scary things had looked on screen, but she’d definitely never look at jellyfish the same way again.
“But enough about that!” Caesar continued, laughter in his voice. “For now, lets call out the woman of the hour- Sadie Martingale, everyone!”
That was her cue. Stepping as carefully as she dared, to avoid making a fool of herself in the heels Fay had given her, she left the shadows behind the curtain and advanced onto the stage while the crowd clapped and cheered. She beamed at them and blew kisses to the audience, feeling almost drunk on the praise. Somewhere in the back of her mind, Sadie knew that they were more excited by the event than by Sadie herself, but that didn’t matter. They were here and cheering because Sadie had won. She’d earned this, and she was going to enjoy it as much as possible.
“Welcome back, Sadie.” Caesar told her, greeting her with a smile and a careful side hug before waving for her to sit down in the thronelike chair next to his own. “I’m glad to see you in good spirits. And so are all of these wonderful people, aren’t you?”
The latter was directed at the audience, who whooped and cheered futher while Sadie gathered her skirts and sat down. The chair was shockingly comfortable, which was a relief. She was mostly recovered, but the lingering bruises and stiffness from her broken ribs ached when she had to hold herself upright. “How could I not be?” Sadie asked him with a grin as she settled in comfortably. “I’m here with you all tonight, wearing the most beautiful dress I’ve ever seen!”
The crowd loved that answer, and Caesar let them cheer again for a minute before waving for quiet and sitting down next to her. “When you put it that way, I don’t know what else I could’ve expected.” He joked. “I take it you’re enjoying your time here celebrating after your win?”
“Oh, I’m excited for it, really.” Sadie admitted a little sheepishly. “They just let me out of my hospital room this morning. I haven’t really gotten to do much more than watch people celebrating on the tv so far. But Odysseus says the celebrations are a lot of fun, so I’m looking forward to experiencing them myself from here on.”
“Oh, well, of course.” Caesar agreed, patting her hand in a gesture that would’ve come off patronizing from most people but felt encouraging here and now. “You did take quite a beating at the end, there. I can’t say I’m surprised you needed to heal. We’ll just have to help you make up for lost time, won’t we?”
More cheering ensued. Someone threw a bouquet at Sadie’s feet from the audience. She eyed it worriedly, trying to figure out how she’d pick it up without hurting herself, but then a flurry of flowers, stuffed animals, and other small, lightweight gifts started landing on the stage and Caesar caught her eye with a tiny wink. The next thing she knew, someone from backstage had darted out to collect all of the gifts for her and set them on the table next to her chair.
“Oh, these are all beautiful, thank you!” Sadie told the audience, looking them over gratefully and choosing a plush manatee to hold on to in her seat.
“I see you haven’t completely given up on marine animals after the Arena.” Caesar joked with a grin.
Sadie looked down at her manatee and beamed. “Well, of course not. I always loved animals. And anyway, the manatees saved my life, remember?”
“Of course, of course! But lets not get too ahead of ourselves, Sadie. We have to do this in something resembling chronological order, or else we’ll get so excited talking about the highlights that we won’t cover everything.”
Sadie giggled and nodded. “You’re right, sorry.”
“Oh, it’s fine. Tonight’s your night! You do what you like, it’s my job to keep us on track.” Caesar said this indulgently, like a grandparent telling their grandchild they could have a cookie before dinner as long as they didn’t tell their parents about it.
“Oh, wow, I guess so.” Sadie blushed a bit and resisted the urge to hide her face in the manatee. “That’s still so weird to me. I’m not used to being at the center of attention.”
“No?” He asked sympathetically. “Well, maybe pretend it’s your birthday party then. Everyone’s the center of attention at their own birthday party, right? And you didn’t get to properly celebrate yours on the day, because you were in the Arena.”
She laughed and shook her head. “Caesar, I’m a twin. Mira always got at least half the spotlight on our birthday- and honestly I preferred it that way. I don’t know if you noticed, but… I’m actually pretty shy.”
The audience, remembering her interview, roared with laughter and applause. Caesar laughed with them. “I suppose I might’ve had an inkling.” He admitted. “Is your sister the social one, then?”
“Definitely.” Sadie giggled a bit, remembering her extroverted sister’s antics over the years trying to get Sadie more comfortable with human interaction. “She’s the talker, of the two of us. She’ll talk anyone’s ear off given half a chance. Mira’s always been fearless. I’m really excited to see her again next week.”
He beamed at her. “Well, now you’re both fearless. Two peas in a pod. I’m sure she’s extremely proud of you and excited for your reunion. As I recall, she was the one you were clinging to so tight during your reaping, correct?”
Sadie nodded. “She was. We’ve never been apart for more than a few hours before, the thought of it was worse than the Games themselves.”
“Well, I can imagine!” Caesar nodded in understanding. “Why don’t we go ahead and have a look at that Reaping footage again, shall we? Then you can tell us all about what you were thinking and feeling in the moment.”
A huge screen at the back of the stage lit up, and Sadie shifted so she could watch without completely turning her back to the audience. Whoever had set up the stage had set the chairs at an angle to make that easier- and Sadie was extremely grateful for this small mercy. Turning around was still very painful.