Little miss sunshine

My heads under water, but I'm breathing fire you're crazy and i'm out of my mind- My name is Clover Darwin. i won the 99th hunger games, but lost a part of myself.

[chip-foster]

Chip had fallen asleep without eating. His shift ended shortly after launch, a small gift that came just at the right moment. He was exhausted, and thought he punched the button to Three’s floor to at least sleep on a couch that was familiar. He couldn’t be sure, though, having lied down on the first cushions he found and fallen asleep with a half-written text message still open. When he woke up, he found his phone immediately lit up with the time. Two. Had he really only slept for an hour? He rubbed at his eyes, and blinked away the bleariness. 2:00 AM. “Fuck…” he muttered. “Is the cafe still open?”

[clover-c-darwin]

“I’m afraid not-” Clover shrugged her shoulders cheeks slightly red by the heat coming from the kitchen area in front of her. She had to admit she had been surprised to find Chip asleep on the sofa when she had exited her room looking for a glass of water. Yet her heart had melted a little at the sight always amazed by how much younger and more innocent he looked when asleep - well at least he did in hers.  “Good thing for you that your personal cafe is always open. Want a pancake?”

[slateskylar]

His mother was dead.

If he were smarter, if he were sensible, he’d have known this. An addict doesn’t walk into the Wilds and live a happy life. An addict walks into the Wilds to die. And some time later, a year or a decade, someone had dug up her bones, taken photos, and put them in a file. A file on Slate.

But no one had thought to tell him. Or perhaps they had thought to, and chosen not to. He was a nobody, a liability, a kid who shouldn’t even exist, who no one should care about.

So yes, of course Flint Doyle was dead. And her son, Slate Doyle — who’d long ago cast that name aside, but hadn’t cast aside the hope that his mother would come back someday — was sitting at the bar in the Tower, nursing his fourth drink, feeling fucking sorry for himself.

“This fucking stupid Arena, I don’t know why every damn TV has to play it all the time,” he ranted, his words slurred, not even sure who was nearby to hear him.

[clover-c-darwin]

“Well - it’s kind of protocoll for them to-” clover shrugged nursing her own drink in her hand slowly. She had just come out of sponsor meetings for tributes that had long passed on and figured that she had deserved to unwind a little. At least as much as one could during those times.

“Something about fines in case they forget about it-”

[zero-linux]

clover-c-darwin​:

As Clover came to a panting halt she tried to wipe the sweat off of her forehead. The holograms of simulated fighters slowly vanished as the last one fell backwards an arrow stuck in his windpipe. She wasn’t quiet sure how long she had been going at the familiar weight of the bow grounding her more than anything had the past fleeting days. The tension in her shoulders refused to loosen though nerves still tingling as if she was waiting for something else to attack. As something rustled behind her her body reacted on instinct whirling around in a second aiming at whoever had disturbed her.

Zero’s brow quirked for a moment, almost an imperceptible gesture as his hands slowly rose up as the tip of the arrow was now aiming for his face. “Maybe don’t,” he muttered, a small, almost bitter chuckle twisting his lips. “At least not today, I’m behind on doing the outfits for the presidential ball.” 

[clover-c-darwin]

"dude -" the words slipped off of her tongue so unfamiliar. It Was one of the few she had started to adapt from Haydn. "don't scare me like that." she lowered the bow slowly Sure not to Set anything off by accident. Her Gaze returned to him though with a playful smirk: "well - perhaps i ought to ask you of your ideas for this time and then decide whether i should put this beauty away or not."

[hestiaember]

clover-c-darwin​:

Clover wrung her hands together as she set the papers aside at last unsure of how to break it to the women. “Well… I’m afraid there she would have to set herself priorities.” Her words trailed off pretty sure that Hestia would get what she was saying: “For the moment there is somebody growing up within her and that should be more important than anything else. That is of course not to say - we don’t always work just within our teams. Perhaps there are a few she could trust to help shoulder the burden. To help in general - sponsors can be talked into funding more than one tribute after all…”

.

“Who… who do you think would do something like that?” She was close with a few people in the Tower, but this was an immense ask. Rarely did she reach for help, despite the fact she always went out of her way to help when other mentors reached out to her. But maybe Clover had done the same, maybe she had some ideas.

[clover-c-darwin]

"anyone you trust enough to. Honestly that is all a gut call. You know those around you the best..." she Trailed off softly knowing that she had it rather easy to talk about. Team three used to be incredibly strong nit - A safety net for anyone to Fall Back on if needed.

"there are quiet a few souls here Hestia. Don't be afraid to ask." she didn't knwo how much she could imply WITHOUT making it too obvious that she had most likely figured the women's secret out,unsure if Hestia even wanted to share it or if it would be better to leave her the Illusion.

[thevultur]

clover-c-darwin​:

“Well… that certainly make more sense.” She leaned a little closer taking a moment to figure out what exactly it was he was showing her before nodding approvingly. She watched his mimic for a moment trying to find what it was he was thinking about - wondering if she could still read him as well as she used to. 

“I used to lick your pizza slices though before I gave them to you.” She tried to humor him again knowing that within the first few weeks they had known each other it would have very well been likely of her to do so. “And I am afraid I kinda already have a working agreement with someone else and I am kind of bound rather tightly to that.” She shrugged as if she was truly saddened by the matter hands finding her way into her pockets to give them somewhere to go instead of hanging around loosely. 

.

“Of course. I cannot compete with the Hunger Games themselves,” he let his mouth run, a little cockily. The mention of the very controversy that tore them apart was bold in a dumb way, but it slipped off his tongue almost by reflex. “At least you got your promotion. No longer an escort,” Lysander smiled encouragingly, trying to drift away from at least the spit.

[clover-c-darwin]

"you could always try to talk my Boss into firing me, but she is Kind of a Hard nur to crack." Clover shrugged a little knowing of the way the topic tended to find their way into their conversations. "as weird as it Sounds - it feels good to be Back." being a mentor Was more - fullfilling in a way. She fehlt more comfortable - more in her element. She could actually get in Touch with the Tribute, albeit this year seemed to be a Hard miss. "I missed having to do more than rwmind people to be on their schedule."

[clover-c-darwin]

Task 011: Cards against Panem

[clover-c-darwin]

thevultur​:

“There is no cage. He is flying freely outside,” Lysander deadpanned, agreeing fully with Clover’s point. That was why the parrot was loose while he was at work and Addy in the Tower. With enough supplies on the balcony of his apartment, and with a microchip tracking everything about the bird, there was little to worry about. It was the closest to nature a bird could get in the urban setting. Pulling out his phone, he showed Clover a map, appearing hologramed in front of them, with a small dot pointing the parrot’s location, in the National park.

At the remark about his unyielding personality, he rolled his eyes, but did not elaborate. She was right to take a blow at his ego. Even though he actively struggled to keep it in check, to keep himself humble and genuine, there were obvious slips that Clover knew of, that she noticed when someone else did not. 

She laughed, and for a moment, it was all fine. Then, she reassured him that she didn’t spit in his coffee, and he breathed out a lost chuckle, dissipating into the air. “Well, thank you very much. I can sleep without any worries, now that I know you didn’t spit into my coffee. Is it too late to ask if you’re looking for a job as an assistant?” The joke was obvious, but the premise amused him. She would have likely handled things better than Slate, though the position was definitely beneath her, as nice as it would have been to have her around more. Did he even seek that anymore? Wasn’t her presence just making it worse, making him guilty, making things awkward? No. No, he still wanted her around, even now.

“Well... that certainly make more sense.” She leaned a little closer taking a moment to figure out what exactly it was he was showing her before nodding approvingly. She watched his mimic for a moment trying to find what it was he was thinking about - wondering if she could still read him as well as she used to. 

“I used to lick your pizza slices though before I gave them to you.” She tried to humor him again knowing that within the first few weeks they had known each other it would have very well been likely of her to do so. “And I am afraid I kinda already have a working agreement with someone else and I am kind of bound rather tightly to that.” She shrugged as if she was truly saddened by the matter hands finding her way into her pockets to give them somewhere to go instead of hanging around loosely. 

[clover-c-darwin]

thevultur​:

“Really? Do I strike you as an avox enabler?” Lysander clicked his tongue, genuinely outraged, though he was keeping it on a low note. For a moment, he had been meaning to ask how come she learned of the bird, but the mention of Addy cleared it out on spot. Even as an avox, it seemed she talked a lot. And it had to have been Adair, because no one else had this much interest in the  damned parrot. 

“Please don’t imply that Adair is influencing me. It’s injuring my fragile ego.” He didn’t even know for sure what she meant by those persuasion skills. Maybe he was unfamiliar to that practice.

Her remark was one of those classic Clover moments. He gave her a fond look, unable to hold off a simper on his lips. “You know what, I can get behind that.” Was that too far, too inappropriate? These days, he wasn’t sure, but it slipped off his tongue before he could quarantine the words and decide whether they didn’t go too far. “Did you really, though?”

“Well - I figured you would need a little help around the house before you would decide to buy a cage for an animal that is supposed to fly freely outside.” She merely shrugged her shoulders still not quiet understanding how the whole arrangement came to be after all. 

“Oh I would never dare to. I know you are a rock in a storm unable to be pestered by anything.” She snickered to herself remembering how quickly the resolve faltered whenever Gwen blinked up at him with her bright eyes. 

Turning her head into his direction she gave him a radiant smile as she broke into a slight chuckle. She didn’t know where it came from - merely that she had missed it. Missed the invisible weight on her shoulder being lifted and feeling able to breathe freely: “I guess that is for you to wonder.” She caught his gaze and for a moment felt herself slipped back to easier times. It was a flicker of content, a fragment of happiness - before it shattered again her smile faltering just a little as she remembered that that wasn’t theirs for now anymore. That she had done brilliantly at letting go of it. 

“I didn’t though - just so that you can go to sleep without any worries.”

[clover-c-darwin]

hestiaember​:

Hestia bit down on her lip, bouncing on her toes as she processed what Clover was saying. “But what if– what if you don’t have a big team. What if the high heels and long evenings with sponsors is the only chance your tribute has?” Only she and KyAnne had the Victor status to pull strings with. She was half of that lift, and they couldn’t afford to lose fifty percent of the effort. Not with Kit in the Arena, especially.

Clover wrung her hands together as she set the papers aside at last unsure of how to break it to the women. “Well... I’m afraid there she would have to set herself priorities.” Her words trailed off pretty sure that Hestia would get what she was saying: “For the moment there is somebody growing up within her and that should be more important than anything else. That is of course not to say - we don’t always work just within our teams. Perhaps there are a few she could trust to help shoulder the burden. To help in general - sponsors can be talked into funding more than one tribute after all...”

[clover-c-darwin]

thevultur​:

At the mention of the parrot, he breathed out a chuckle. It also made him wonder what and how much else she heard of his life right now. It was odd, to consider Clover as something out of the loop when she was once the first to know, the only to know at times. “Well, yes. And an avox, if you can believe it. And an assistant who spits in my coffee.” That last part was slightly more bitter than he liked his voice, but he exhaled yet another one of his tired, silent snickers as Slate crossed his mind once again.

“The avox is almost more believable than the bird.” For a brief moment she wondered how they were keeping it. If it could just shuffle in and out at it’s leisure or if they actually got a cage for it and in the next she asked herself if that would have been too intruding, to personal unsure of what stand they were at.

Seriously she had thought feelings would become less complicated once the left the stage of hormones that flew wildly everywhere. “Addy really does have some sort of magical persuasion skills, doesn’t she?” She opted for a slight snicker instead feeling more secure with that.

As he finished she couldn’t help the quick laugh escaping her though shoulders dropping by an inch as she turned to Lysander a mischievous glint in her eyes: “Oh - that’s not all that special. I used to do that for weeks when we first met.”

[clover-c-darwin]

honeybellerose​:

“Might not get a chance to,” she shrugged, a smile twisting her lips that looked almost sour. “Escort to tribute, yada yada yada.” The claps finally ceased and Honey began to grin in earnest. “That’s fine. I’d really like not to shoot myself, that sounds perfect. How fucking anticlimactic, if I just… you know.”

“Been there - not really worth the effort.” She shrugged back having seen too many kids die by accident because they took on more than they could handle. “Well - get in here.” She nudged her head a little seizing the girl up wondering just what would be the right size for her. “You have any sort of experience with it?”

[clover-c-darwin]

selenehoneybell​:

Clover’s words had been an understatement. Even people like Selene, those who weren’t as heavily opposed to the Games as some other rebels involved, could agree with her sentiments. Selene would have very well quit her position if her reputation didn’t depend on it. “Is there something keeping you here, Clover? Someone, perhaps? I would imagine that your team is more than capable if you needed to get away from the Games.”

The thought alone made Clover surpress an ironic chuckle. As if it was possible to just leave so easily because they didn’t need her anymore. Yet she tried not to let her bitterness show as much as she shrugged her shoulders: “Oh - they are definitely more than capable. It’s not really much a choice though when you get ordered back whenever you decide to try not to.” 

[clover-c-darwin]

hestiaember​:

“Let’s say there’s a mentor that’s hypothetically pregnant. Hypothetically,” she repeated, her voice buzzing with nerves. “How… What would you tell them about how you got through the Games while being pregnant? Lets say if they didn’t want people to know about it?”

Clover turned to the women eyebrow raised sceptically. There were a lot of hypothetically. Her gaze flickered to the womens waist not surprised to find it a little thicker than she could remember. Yet - she was no one to judge. “Well - hypothetically seen I imagine it must be very stressful for her and that she should most definitely prioritize her own health at this point. Lots of rest is important. And your team needs to have your back - no high heels, no long evenings with sponsors - let’s say it like this: having no people in the know is close to impossible, but perhaps she could just circle it down to afew key players.”

[clover-c-darwin]

thevultur​:

“It looks like they are going to kick us out, too,” he joked. They would never dare, though he did not like to abuse his power and stay overtime, unless she wanted to take an extra half an hour for training privately. No. Lysander decided against proposing that. Turning on his heels, he actively tried to appear immune to all the uncomfortable silences between them. “Let me accompany you out. I missed talking to you.”

“Let them try-” She attempted to shot back light heartedly yet still moved to gather her stuff albeit it didn’t consist out of much. A towel and her phone. Slipping beneath the marker that closed off the training space she found that this used to be easier as well and figured she would be in for quiet a bit of soreness the next day. 

Her eyes found his again and despite all that lay in between them she couldn’t help but seek out the slight isle of peace it always brought to her no matter how overshadowed by everything else that was the mess of their life it was. “I’d appreciate this. I heard you got yourself some birdie?”

[clover-c-darwin]

treelish​:

it’s been. I mean, I moved in with lysander after the last games. he got a bird, so that’s been most of the good stuff. avoxes never had a lot of good stuff to report. but there was a bit, and nothing so bad. not so bad.

The answer made her pause for a moment, the information new to her. “You did?” The surprise in her voice wasn’t hidden by anything processing that they got a bird together. “How did that come to be? And a bird? I sure hope the snake and it get along.”

[hestiaember]

“May I ask you something?” It was her and Clover alone in one of the mentor workrooms, a mug of mint tea steaming in front of her. Several people in the Tower had gone through pregnancy as a Victor, but she trusted Clover to keep a secret. And as the days wore on, she was becoming more and more desperate for some advice and some solidarity. Keeping her pregnancy hidden was becoming far more of a daunting, exhausting task than she’d anticipated.

@clover-c-darwin​

[clover-c-darwin]

“Sure-” Clover muttered eyes still roaming over the text in front of her. Those guidelines for sponsor gifts had been turning more complicated over the years as it had seemed. It frustrated her - even more rules she needed to consider. More ties restricting her in what she wanted to do. Still she didn’t quiet have the heart to turn Hestia away knowing fully well that the papers could wait. She would have enough time to figure them out.

[clover-c-darwin]

luca-acero​:

Luca smiled, nodded, suspected Clover knew exactly what she was talking about, having been in the game for so long now. “We are? Well I’ll make sure to keep a watch out for that, so”

Clover allowed herself a smug smile although deep down she knew she had merely bought herself some time. perhaps though she would gain some stroke of luck - some fortunate mishap that would play into her cards.  “First rule of the games. Always look out for the unexpected.”