Genesis

This is when I will formally meet her. I can just make out the flickering black of her dress through the dwindling crowd. Behind me, I feel Neve grip my elbow. He leans in close so my back is against his chest and lets his cool breath wash over the right side of my face.

“Not here, Kara,” he murmurs.

“She’s annoying,” I hiss back.

He lets out a sigh just as the rest of our team gather around where we are planted. Samos is the first to spy what I’m looking at. Like Neve, he gives me a warning.

“Ya better not,” he says, eyes narrowed. “She ain’t done nothin’ to ya.”

This makes me bristle. My lips curl back in a sneer. This just makes Samos grunt.

“Matter O’ fact, why don’t ya meet ‘er? Might do ya some good,” says the old man.

“Are you insane?” comes Neve. “She’ll rip her eyes out!”

Samos seems to study me for a minute while the prep team twitters around about this and that. They are the only ones talking. Neve, Samos and I are staring hotly at each other.

“No, she needs to meet ‘er. Will do ‘er good. You two might need Twelve in the Games.”

“Like Hell! I’d rather cut off my fingers than ask those assholes to be our allies!”

Samos presses in close, gripping my shoulder. He ignores me when I attempt to squirm out of his strong hold and just watches me seriously. Neve is still close, but he seems intent on letting Samos take direction here. I throw him an evil look that he ignores.

“Ya ain’t thinkin’ clearly, Kara,” Samos starts. “Now come on and meet ‘em. And don’t act like a heathen.”

“I am not a heathen and I don’t act like one, thank you!”

“Well, sometimes—“starts Neve.

I cut him off with a hard jab to his gut. He glares at me.

As we near Twelve, their mentor, Haymitch, catches sight of our group approaching. He murmurs something quickly to the Tributes and then slaps on a smile I can easily see through. The old Twelve Victor seemed just as uncomfortable with us interacting with his two prized gems as I was.

“Samos!” calls Haymitch.

Instead of jovially greeting him, Samos just tips his head in a curt nod. Haymitch just smiles and pats Samos’s back when we get close enough. After his introductions, it is Neve and I’s turn.

“This is Kara and Neve from District Five,” explains Twelve’s mentor.

When her eyes fall on me, I almost sneer. Neve grabs my wrist, though, and slides his fingers through mine, uncurling them from the fist they were bound in. I draw in a deep breath that just makes me angrier.

“Five, this is Kat—“

“Katniss Everdeen,” I interrupt.

A sickly sweet smile swipes onto my lips. I feel Neve stiffen a little beside me. He squeezes my hand, but I ignore him.

“Everyone knows the Capitol’s new darling, Haymitch. You’d have to be stupid not to.”

“I’m not—“

I can’t help it. My lips crack in a leer that makes the blonde boy, Peeta, frown and Katniss trail off.

“Oh, I know. But you mine as well be,” I say.

Her eyebrows furrow and she’s about to open her mouth again, but Haymitch shuffles his way between us. He laughs forcefully and raises his hands in mock surrender. I scoff at him while allowing Neve to pull me back into his chest again.

“Easy there, Kara,” chuckles Haymitch. “Plenty of time for all that in the Arena.”

He is laughing, but I have succeeded in making Peeta and Katniss on edge. Peeta’s brow is crink;ed, like he’s thinking deeply, and Katniss is staring at me in alarm. I’m trying to refrain from lurching at her.

“Well, this seems like a happy meeting.”

I roll my eyes at the sound of his voice. If there was anyone who could further add to my annoyance, it would be Finnick Odair.

When he appears at my left, next to Samos, he sends me a handsome grin that I simply glare at. He laughs softly at this while sending me a wink. I swallow down the urge to gag.

“It was very nice to meet you both,” says Neve. “We wish you luck in the Games.”

And with that, my fellow Tribute uses the hand he has his pushed through in order to pull me away. Samos follows closely after mumbling something quickly. Finnick blows me a kiss that I scowl at.



When training begins the next morning, Neve and I come to realize that many of our fellow Tributes want Twelve as their ally. It doesn’t bother me. I know they’ll eventually turn on Katniss and Peeta. The two star-crossed lovers won’t make it out of that arena.

But I do worry about what will happen to Beetee, Wiress, Neve and myself. People aren’t lining up to join forces with us. Our chances of increasing our numbers is looking dim.

“Don’t think about that anymore,” mutters Neve.

We’re at the Edible Plants station, leaned over some leafy green thing that I’m ignoring. But Neve is fingering it gently and seemingly trying to puzzle out whether it’s poisonous or not.

“We need more people,” I whisper back. “What’re we going to do if the Career’s come for us?”

My district partner sends me a frustrated look. I just sigh and slap away the leaves of some plant that had been tickling my thigh. Nudging closer to him, I nuzzle into his side. He adjusts but doesn’t move away. Instead, he lets me wrap one of my arms around his bicep.

We are so close that I can smell the soap he used this morning. It’s a pleasant scent that calms me some.

“Neve, I’m worried. I… Wiress and Beetee… We have to do everything. They can’t—“

He cups my face with the hand not entangled with the plant, cutting me off abruptly. For a second I worry about the other Tributes seeing us. Neve communicated by touch, though. It’s how he worked. I knew that word would do little for me at this point, anyway. I was panicking too badly.

“We’ll do everything we can. I promise.”

Desperately, I stare into his eyes, looking for any doubts. I don’t find any, though. He is certain that they will make it out alright. I wonder if that’s because he’s accepted the reality that he won’t. It makes me frown.

Before I can respond, though, the sound of feet slapping against the flooring alerts me to the fact that someone is approaching. Neve and I pull away just as Finnick Odair appears over my shoulder.

“Don’t mean to interrupt,” he grins.

I roll my eyes and stand. With a waggle of my fingers to Neve, I start for the Fire Making station. Finnick is right behind me.

“Teach me a thing or two, won’t you peach?”

“Fuck off,” I hiss.

The District Four Victor laughs lightly and hangs an arm around my shoulders. He tugs me into his side. When I send him a scathing look, he just winks.

“Why do you hate me, Kara, darling? Most people are quite fond of me. But not you,” he says.

I shake off his arm before getting in line behind the two morphlings from District Six. Finnick falls in behind me.

“You’re annoying,” I explain.

“No, it’s more than that.”

He leans in close and rests his chin on my shoulder. His breath is cool as it washes over the skin of my neck

“You don’t like me because I’m not as bitter as you,” he quietly whispers.

Whirling around, I go to slap him. He catches my wrist, though, and grins even wider.

“How dare—“

“No need to deny it, darling. It’s alright, though. I happen to like a challenge.”

And with a final wink, Finnick is heading over to where Katniss is standing by Mags. I stare at him as he goes and try to think of how I could get to him before the start of the Games.