Aven and I watched her with bated breath. We clung to each other's hands as we all watched the fight, stony silence in our little heaven. I couldn't believe what I was watching, what the Arena had turned my sweet Liliah into. I don't think any of us were surprised when Wistar pulled away with the title but my heart broke as Liliah's cannon fired.
I separated from Aven for just a brief moment, to go to her. I couldn't imagine Nova's state of grief, losing her brother and her best friend in the same day. But she would hang in there, she was a strong girl. Liliah's destroyed body sprawled over the ground and she appeared in front of me, unbroken and slightly translucent.
I wrapped my arms around her tightly, my smile and her confused expression a stark contrast. I squeezed my arms around her and rested my chin on top of her head. There was room for her and Aven both, if she wanted to stick around with us. With Pixel and Obe and everyone else too.
I pulled back, smiling at her a little as I squeezed her shoulder. "Welcome home, kiddo," I said, reaching back for Aven's hand again. "Welcome home."
And They All Lived Happily Ever After || Death Oneshot
I slammed violently into the back wall. I don’t know what overcame me, possibly it was losing Aven or general shock from being blinded or that I still had no fucking idea where I was, but I couldn’t walk straight or think straight. His voice shot out behind me and I tried to turn but the sharp pain through my back held me in place and I slumped against the wall.
All I saw was Aven. All I saw was her smile, the way she smiled yesterday as we nibbled on cake and wiped frosting on each other’s faces. I loved her so. Even as I hung bleeding out all I could think was how much I loved her. Nova and Diesel and Turbo would be fine. I’m sure Liliah would be waiting for me. I’m sure people in the tavern were throwing their money onto the bar, laughing at those who wanted me home. But all I could think was that smile and those eyes.
I’ll see you again someday, princess. I tried to whisper, but nothing came out.
The cannon fired. My cannon.
Looking down, I couldn’t help but laugh. I was wearing a light green button-up with the sleeves rolled. Of course it was green. The colour of peas and frogs and the colour that weirdly enough brought me and Aven together. I needed her. I needed to make sure she was okay, even if I was dead. I wanted her to go home.
I felt like I was still blind, stumbling around, trying to find her. My stomach dropped when I did, her body destroyed and bleeding on the ground with Miriam’s half-eaten corpse strewn across the chamber that was adjacent to mine. I didn’t even want to know who the third party was. I fell to my knees beside her body, letting myself break down and sob. She’d been destroyed, she was dead, and I placed my head on her stomach and cried my heart out for the first time in years.
“I love you,” I choked, no real tears falling but the sobs echoed. “I love you so much Aven I’m so sorry I never should have let go of your hand I’m so sorry-” I clung to her, sobbing hysterically into her body. This was it. This was where I was spending my eternity. I was never leaving her side. I let out a wail that turned into a screech, trying to muffle my cries.
“Christ, Bennett, you turned into an even bigger sap now that you’re dead!” I heard the familiar voice crow from behind me. Turning around, I saw Aven, perfect as I’d remembered, her long brown hair still floating down her back, her blue eyes staring at me and her arms crossed with that perfect little smirk on her face.
I didn’t bother to snap a comeback. I just scrambled to her, practically flying to her, and kissing her hard and deep, the way I’d never gotten to. My hands found her legs and I lifted her up, feeling her long legs wrap around my waist as I supported her, kissing her like I’d never had the chance to. Her arms wound around my neck and as I pulled back, a goofy grin was on my face.
“I love you. Forever. You’re never getting rid of me, Bosworth. Peas don’t die, you know. And I’m always, always going to be your pea. And your prince, if you let me. I am never going anywhere and I will not leave you, never again.”
Her eyes sparkled as she returned the little smile, unwrapping one arm from around me to flick my nose. “I love you too, Bennett. I’m gonna re-break that nose, you know. Keep you from getting too sappy.” I shook my head, moving back to kiss her again, over and over. I covered her face in kisses, barely paying attention to the fact that we weren’t even in the arena anymore.
Drawing back from her, I finally realized we weren’t alone. Pixel was there, her hand covering Oberon’s eyes and shaking her head, a smile on her face. She uncovered his eyes as Aven and I stepped apart and I let Aven greet Obe while I swept Pixel up into my arms, giving her a tight squeeze and kiss on the cheek.
“He’s fine, your Wistar is fine,” I said with a little smile, remembering having seen Andre’s body ablaze and knowing her boy was the third party. I offered Obe a hug too and then looked around. Nearly everyone who I cared about was here. And Liliah was still alive.
I was going to watch over her, pray she got home to my sister. If she couldn’t, I’d be there for her. There was room in my life for both of my girls. I just hoped that she would make it home, to her parents, to her family and to mine.
Aven and I- well, neither of us are perfect. But I think that we’re perfect together. We have each other, and I have my new friends. The statistics were never in my favour and I know that, I know that I was never the one with the best odds. But despite that, I don’t regret anything. Meeting Aven made this hell a little more bearable.
She kisses me and my heart soars, I barely let go of her hand, and I like to think that I make her a better person. And of course, she makes me better too. I watch over my siblings and we watch over Aven’s family. And I never, ever have to leave her. Our tale was no fairy tale, despite the princess and the frog prince, but I like to think it has the same ending as the stories we heard at night do.
100% Officially Stopped Being Fun || Coven Fallen Oneshot
The rest of the afternoon was both more and less eventful than the remainder of the day. Nobody disturbed us as Aven slumbered on but at the same time, two more cannons fired. Ten left... the thought chilled me.
Having no sense of time was odd. The only things that guided me through the day were the long shadows and the Capitol anthem and logo in the sky. I sat back and watched it from under the little makeshift tent. And I didn't like what I saw.
And then Pixel. I felt like throwing up. I'd escaped mostly not having to see my friends dead, mostly acquaintances that I was fond of. But Pixel, apart from Liliah, was one of my first friends here. I picked up a little rock and tossed it lightly, wishing to pitch it as hard as I could but didn't in fear of giving us away.
Any enjoyment I felt toward this process was gone. I hated that I'd ever supported it with my betting. I hated these Games and the Capitol and every single Gamemaker and citizen who watched and applauded with glee.
I must've moved too much because Aven stirred at my side. "Pixel and Nara." I said hoarsely. She quirked an eyebrow at my concern. "I was kinda close with both of them." But I would not cry, the Capitol wouldn't get the satisfaction of my tears. It had been years since I'd cried. I could hold on another day.
"Only ten left," I added, passing her the container of olives to have something else to eat. I sipped water, terrified of tomorrow. Things were going to escalate and likely we couldn't hide from danger any longer. For the first time since I got here, the fact that I was going to die was completely imminent and I wasn't ready to say goodbye to anything in this world.
"I love you." I said quietly, and Aven nodded. "You too, Bennett."
I laid down after a while, resting my head on her knee. I had a feeling this could be the last night we ever spent together and I didn't want to sleep. We spoke quietly more about our families and our home lives and just things I never wanted to forget about her. We didn't touch on death. No sense worrying about the inevitable.
"Goodnight, Aven," I whispered as I grew tired, letting sleep pull me under.
I nudged him with my elbow, settling into the warmth of his arms as we sat in relative silence. We were safe, for now. Tomorrow was another day closer to the end and hopefully we would be able to hear a cannon sometime soon that signalled a death of another enemy. Without too much bloodshed tonight I hated to think what the gamemakers would conjure up to terrorise us with tomorrow.
"First Watch?" I offered, falling into our regular routine. Catching sleep when we could and watching out for the other while we waited. “We will be okay, Bennett. I love you, okay?"
I smiled as she nudged me, and I squeezed her closer in reply. I'd never felt the way I felt for her before. It was weird, feeling so much love for someone else that wasn't my family. And the love was different. I rested my head against hers as she snuggled in close.
"Of course." I said, pulling the blanket and pillow from the pack and helping her settle in for a nap. "I know we will be, Bosworth. I love you too. I promise I'll be here with you. Always. I'm not going anywhere."
I leaned down to kiss her before settling back against the rock under our little tent, letting her sleep with her head in my lap. I clung to my knives and crowbar, hoping that we could finish the day with no drama.
"You. Definitely you." Patting the spot beside me as we contemplated our next move. His question about the cannons made her pause, trying to think about the day that had stretched out behind them. Nothing. No deaths. Fuck.
"They’ll want death tonight, if not tonight something will happen tomorrow. Fuck." I couldn’t believe how close we were getting to the finale but the prospect of the gamemakers throwing something at us that would rip us apart curled in my gut. What would I do if tomorrow I woke up and Colt wasn’t here. “Shit what are we going to do?"
I smiled. "Good. I'm a better protector than he is anyways- though I'm less fuzzy." I shuddered at the memory of being waxed. Aven paused and I settled down next to her, wrapping my arm around her shoulders.
"Yeah, I agree. Hopefully someone else does something because we're not moving, not right now. Not unless we need to. Calm down, Aven. It's gonna be okay." She looked concerned and I leaned over to kiss her temple. "I will not let them tear us apart. We are going to camp here tonight and go climb the mountain tomorrow."
"I can go with missing one arrow. I’ve got a knife and my big fuzzy protector to get me through." I teased as I watched him jab at rocks to get our makeshift shelter up to shape. I could tell he wanted my sponsor to bestow us with a tent but I wanted to cash in on a present when I needed it, for now we could make do.
"I don’t intend on being here long tomorrow, this is just to keep us from being spotted while we sleep. Tomorrow we need to either go back down or scale the mountain. Maybe we can make a weapon from the rocks tied in a parachute. Hopefully we can bludgeon someone to death if they find us."
I smiled. "Would that be referencing me or our little moose friend?" I teased back, looking over my shoulder to stick my tongue out at her playfully. The parachute stayed up surprisingly and I figured it might do at least for just tonight.
"Agreed. I'm thinking up because there might still be some gas down below, or whatever that was. I think the rocks in the parachute is a good idea." I paused, looking back at her again. "Isn't it weird that we've not heard any cannons today?"
"Grab an arrow, break off the head and hold it up that way." I answered as I continued to hack away, finally placing the parachutes flat on the ground in front of us. We just needed to collect some rocks and leaf litter, dirt and small twigs to cover it up. It was a good idea and I knew that it was going to get cold up here come night fall.
"It’s temporary but it will do for the night, tomorrow we can figure out our next move?"
I nodded, taking two arrows and fiddling with them, trying to hold the parachutes into the rocks in a makeshift tent. "We couldn't just get an actual tent, could we? That'd just be too easy," I muttered, jabbing at the rock. "Why are we even using these? You'll need them."
I held them up to the best of my ability and looked at her. "Well, it'll protect us from rain. Tomorrow we'll have to see how it goes."
"You will, those dreams don’t die just because of what you have been through. Maybe in twenty years from now all those little Bennetts won’t have to worry about being reaped and I’d hate for you to deprive yourself of fatherhood just because of the games." Talking more about the arena and what we should do diverted my attention from the future. We needed to play the game, we needed to survive another night. Glancing down at my pack I grabbed the knife and began hacking off the parachute’s from their canisters.
"If we can find a stick or something we can somehow attach these above the rocks, find some debris or something and place it overhead so we can blend in. It’s simple but it should work."
I nodded. "I guess so. Time heals those wounds, I guess. I just... I don't know." I stuttered. I didn't want to say the words, that I didn't know how I would be able to find someone that made me feel the way that Aven did. I nearly laughed at the idea of little Bosworth-Bennetts running around.
She started hacking at the parachutes and I raised an eyebrow. "Not a bad idea, Bosworth. But where are we going to find a stick?"
"Maybe you won’t be dead, maybe you’ll go home and have a hundred little Bennett’s running around?" I suggested, I didn’t want him to give up or give his life for mine. I’d never forgive him. “You’re going to fight Colt."
Glancing up at the mountain I wondered what we were going to do tonight. We couldn’t venture back down to the safety of the Cornucopia with the gas still running rampant, I didn’t want to slip into a cave for fear of collapse but if we stayed out here we would be sitting ducks. “I think we would be hard-pressed to find you a noble steed, Bennett. Our best bet is hiding for the night and tackling this bitch tomorrow."
I smiled. "I'd love to have kids... the Games complicate that, but I really would. I'd love to find a family but nobody comes out of here the same... if I do win, I don't know if I'll still want that." I shrugged, nodding at her words. "Yeah, I will. And I want you to fight too."
We both stared up at the mountain in silence for a moment, then back toward the ground. "I agree. Should we go a little higher up or stick around here? We should find a camp soon, I don't want to do much more wandering... if people were nearby by now we would be dead."
Talking about death like this was odd. I’d expected us to just keep blundering our way through the arena without any thought of the repercussions. I didn’t want to think of how I’d survive the arena if Colt was gone. I’d probably still be pouting in the Cornucopia with no sponsor, no weapons and just waiting for my own death blow.
Taking another part of the cake, I busied myself with chewing. “Three days, 12 people dead….maybe we aren’t going to be here much longer? Especially with the gamemakers forcing us further up the mountain. No doubt they have plans."
I nodded. "Yeah... I agree. On one end I'm almost relieved, thankful to be out of this place but then there's the side of it that I'll be dead, I'll never see my family again... or you." I shrugged.
"But that mountain is not looking inviting. Neither is the gas down there. Makes you just want to jump on a gazelle and ride the hell out of here, doesn't it?"
"Yeah cause you are a giant freaking sap." I smacked his elbow when he went to nudge me again. He was insane but it meant a lot that he was here with me and trying to figure out what was going on. I had a feeling he wanted his notepad, to jot down what he knew of the arena to calculate our chances of getting the fuck out of here.
"Where did that come from?" I asked suddenly when he started professing his love again. “You know I love you and you can bet your ass I’ll be haunting you if I die here. But can we leave the cheesy shit for another time, I’m trying to enjoy the chocolate coma and I don’t want to vomit it back up you sap."
I laughed when she smacked me, being a sap got a bit of a rise out of her which I enjoyed. Odd that the base of our relationship was on teasing each other but it worked for us. I smiled, putting my mind back into games mode for a while, trying to work out alliances in my head. What I'd do for a notebook right about now.
I shrugged. "I don't know, I was just thinking about it. I mean, I don't know how much longer I'll be around to annoy you in person. I'm glad we have that agreement. We'll haunt each other." I nodded in agreement, "Yeah that's fine. But I mean every word." I pinched off another piece of cake, popping it into my mouth.
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