LEGENDS ▹ the hunger games au

xxiii

YOU BURN WITH US

CAL swallowed hard.

He couldn't reconcile that image of the dazzling gorgeous victor with the battered bleeding girl who haunted his dreams. By all rights, Willow Mellark had won the 100th Games, but she did not get the spoils like they had dreamed about in the arena. She didn't get to go home, still be a child for a while, dance.

Now, Will wasn't herself. And she would hate that more than anything.

Her words tossed around inside of his head, making him nauseous, making him faint. Tacky love story act with the boy from District Four. Alliance was a plaything. It was us playing with them. It couldn't be true, he knew it couldn't. She was saying and doing what she had to stay alive. If she didn't, she would be dead. Still... still.

He saw her for what she was. And she saw him just the same.

Seeing her again just opened up the floodgates for more questions. What were they doing to Will to make her say those things? Did she make a deal? Did she mean what she said in the arena? And where was Annie? Was his mother hurt? Was she in pain and needing them? What about Grier and the other tributes? Was his ally from Seven okay, or even alive? Why did Grier not cut out her tracker when she cut out his and Tera's? Was there any way to save them all?

He didn't know.

Ignoring the schedule printed on his arm, Cal found himself going down to Special Defense where Tera apparently spent most of her time. He wasn't sure why, but after seeing Will on screen... he just needed a familiar face. One he knew from the arena. When he asked for Tera, there was a bit of discussion amongst the guards about whether he was allowed access. Finally, though, he was directed through a maze of labs, testing ranges, and other such places until he caught sight of his old ally.

Tera was working hard, hunched over a desk scattered with tools, wires, and bits of metal. Whatever it was didn't make sense to Cal, but it, of course, made perfect sense to Tera. Her wiry hair was coiled out in every direction, beautiful and untamed around her face. Her plump bottom lip was tucked between her teeth and her brow was furrowed in concentration. Although she didn't look up from her desks, she seemed to have expected him.

Suddenly, she announced, "You're late."

Flinching in surprise, Cal blinked a few times before cocking his head, "You expected me to come?"

"Yes. Sooner."

He would have come sooner, if he knew where she was, if he hadn't kept passing out every five minutes.

"Sorry..."

Tera shrugged a shoulder and continued tinkering, the metal wheels of her chair whirring as she shifted around. After that shock she received from the reactor, she was now confined to a wheelchair. She didn't mind. It didn't stop her in the slightest. Tera was still paler than usual, seeming like she was healing, but her big brown eyes were bright with life. He found himself smiling slightly at the sight of her.