love made me crazy

Rory // eighteen // D12 tribute

[rory-hawthorne]

pixel-del‌:

“Geof stays,” Pixel crossed her arms as her escort complained. “We already lost one escort over my snake. We’re not afraid to lose another.”

The woman left in a huff and Pixel smiled victoriously to herself. Her pink python had become a staple at home, and the other Three victors didn’t seem to have nearly as much of a problem with her pet as the Capitolites did. Maybe that was why she loved it so much; irritating Capitolites had become a hobby of hers.

Pixel turned around on her heels, deciding she wanted a snack. That train of thought was interrupted when she was met with the eyes of someone standing behind her.

“Oh, hey,” she said, stopping in place. “Didn’t see you there.” // @ttwstarters

Rory was on his way to the cafeteria when he found himself in the middle of an argument. Thankfully, it was nearing its end. An upset Capitolite nearly plowed into him as she stormed off, and then suddenly he was face-to-face with Pixel Delaroux, one of the youngest victors in history.

“Hey,” he replied. He could’ve left it there but it felt rude to do so. Pixel was around Vick’s age, but with Posy’s red hair. He didn’t want to imagine either of them going through everything she had. “Geof’s a great name for a snake. Just, you know. In case no-one’s told you that.”

[rory-hawthorne]

marinazale‌:

Waverly’s eyes lit up whenever Rory acknowledged her, only encouraging the infant to babble more.  It was as though she was trying to hold a whole conversation with him.  While the small girl was used to having these babble conversations with her parents, it was nice for her to interact with others in the same way.  Marina could tell Rory had experience with little kids.

Smiling slightly, she adjusted Waverly on her lap, allowing the infant to face Rory while they conversed.  “You’ve got experience with babies.  It shows.”  

His question didn’t surprise her.  Tributes often asked for help with things, but she also knew some tributes didn’t trust her.  Especially those from the outer districts just saw her as a career from Four.  “For the interview, you want to be yourself to a degree,” she started.  “And the Capitol is picky…..they know what they want to hear, but they don’t want you to say it just because they want to hear it.  If they feel like you aren’t being genuine you’ll lose them.  It’s hard to find a balance, but your escort can help, or Jackson, or even me.”

His eyes flicked up to Marina’s, away from Waverly’s. “My little sister is nine years younger than me. It’s a big age gap.” Rory would move mountains for Posy- and she knew it. “I always hoped to have my own kids. Somehow I doubt I’ll get the chance now.” He wasn’t leaving the arena. And even if he did, somehow- even if he won by accident- he couldn’t imagine ever falling for someone who wasn’t Prim.

He reached over, offering Waverly his hand to play with. His nails were smoother than they had ever been, but there were blisters on his fingers from hunting that his prep team had been unable to soften. He imagined the range of textures would be interesting for her.

As Marina gave her advice, Rory allowed himself a small chuckle. “Forgive me, but Jackson doesn’t seem like the interview type.” Neither of Twelve’s living victors were known for their charisma. Rory understood that. He imagined he’d be the same, were he in their shoes.

“I don’t know if you remember Prim’s sister?” he asked. “But the guy who was in the arena with her a few years back made her really stand out in their interviews. I wanna do that for Prim. I just... don’t know how to.” He could hardly steal Peeta’s idea and confess his love in front of the entire nation. Snow had everyone convinced that they were cousins.

[rory-hawthorne]

marinazale‌:

Waverly was immediately entranced by Rory.  He waved at her and her tiny legs kicked out and she babbled happily, as if to tell him all about her adventures for the day.  Honestly, it was sweet and Marina was glad to see her daughter wasn’t nervous around the tribute.  She could only imagine being a tribute around a crying baby wouldn’t be high on a priority list.

“She likes you,” Marina chuckled.  “If you don’t mind the company that would be good.”  She could wait for Jackson to return and make small talk with the boy.  Marina knew Jackson was a little more concerned about getting Prim out than Rory, but she also knew he just desperately wanted a victor.

Her gaze moved to the paused tv when she sat down, noticing the image of Caesar frozen on screen.  “Interview research?” she asked while Waverly kept happily babbling to Rory.

Rory kept his eyes trained on Waverly, a soft smile on his face as she babbled away. He hummed every so often, to let her know he was listening. He remembered how upset Posy used to get when people treated her as though she was stupid, even before she knew enough real Panemian words to actually make any sense to anyone.

“I feel honoured,” he replied, shifting up on the sofa to make room. Of everyone he’d met in the Capitol, he felt like Waverly’s opinion of him was one of the most important ones.

At Marina’s words, his gaze flicked back to the TV for a moment. “Yeah. I’m not really a people person, I figured it couldn’t hurt to take notes.” 

Should he ask for help? Marina had won the Games after all, and she’d had a recent victor in Lincoln Conway. After a brief internal struggle, he shifted around to look at her. “Do you have any tips?” he asked.

[rory-hawthorne]

marinazale‌:

@rory-hawthorne

The closer they got to the arena the more Marina had to do, but sometimes she needed a break.  That didn’t seem like too much to ask for.  She rode the elevator up to the penthouse level with Waverly happily babbling in her arms, tiny legs kicking out.  When the doors opened she stepped out onto the Twelfth floor in search of her boyfriend, but didn’t see him.

Instead she found his tribute.  A soft smile formed on her lips as she approached the boy.  Waverly kept babbling happily and Marina shifted her grip on the infant.  “Sorry to intrude,” she started softly.  “I was looking for Jackson.  Is he up here?”

Rory was most scared for his interview. He knew he couldn’t hope to do something as show-stealing as Peeta had when he confessed his love for Katniss in front of the entire nation, but he had to do something to improve Prim’s chances. Anything.

He was watching interviews from previous Games, analysing every answer and movement in search of some inspiration, when he heard the elevator doors opening.

Expecting Prim, he paused the TV and turned to look over the back of the sofa. Instead he found himself looking at Marina Zale. Marina had been receiving a lot of buzz in Twelve recently because she was the girlfriend of one of their only victors. She was probably one of the few victors from outside his district that he recognised, discounting the most recent ones.

His eyes dropped to the baby in her arms and he smiled softly, reaching up a hand to give Waverly a little wave.

“I haven’t seen him,” he told her mother. “You’re welcome to stay until he comes back, though. I’m just watching old interviews.”

[rory-hawthorne]

maxaroha‌:

Max hadn’t thought he would try to like any of the other tributes. Sure, he wanted to be nice and not the kind of assholes that the Careers could be sometimes. But, within those first couple of minutes he kind of liked Rory. Maybe it was the handshake or the fact that he didn’t look at him quite like an enemy or something to observe. Maybe, Max was looking for something nicer than what the Hunger Games could offer. 

“You’d think since I’m from Two, I’d know more, but I can barely operate the things here. I liked the mountains more than the machines back home,” he said, as we walked over to the hologram area. It was pretty large and as he entered commands into the computer, a scene started to pop up in front of them. A large swath of forest encompassed the ground in front of them and three faceless humans began to walk around. 

“Okay, you ready? You have to try to make it to the other side without getting caught by those creepy guys. Whenever you want we can go.”

“I’ve always wondered what it’s like in the mountains,” Rory confessed. Two was famous for its mountains, and Rory had always been fascinated by the images on the TV of the terrain, sprinkled with snow and looking like a Candlenights card.

He stepped into the hologram area, senses immediately spiking as the simulation clicked and whirred to life. “You go right, I’ll go left, we’ll circle round and meet on the other side,” he planned aloud, before remembering that he was supposed to be looking bad at this.

It took all of his self-control to take a step forward, heel first, and with as much noise as possible. He looked over his shoulder at Max and made a show of wincing, as though embarrassed by his lack of skill.

[rory-hawthorne]

maxaroha‌:

“Of all the places to be edgy, this sure seems like an appropriate place to be that. I don’t blame you for being on your guard.”It would probably serve him well if he continued that into the Arena, but Max couldn’t tell him that, right? Was it right not to give him more of a chance to survive? Max wondered if one of the many classes that Briella took over the past year was how to deal with the morality of this whole thing. 

The guy’s interest in the holograms was enough for Max to stick around. He just hoped that he could play off being not stealthy as a choice rather than a lack of practice. “I’ll try it with you, I’ve got to do something with this day, right? Make use of what’s around here.”

Max put out his hand as Rory introduced himself. “I’m Max, from Two. You’re from Twelve right?” he asked, pretty confident that he remembered the other boy that volunteered. “It’s nice to meet you Rory, I can punch in something into the hologram and we can get this thing started, okay?

He meandered his way to the hologram station, pulling up the computer and punching in a couple of commands. “We’ll start easy? Do you want to do one at a time or go at the same time?”

“Thanks, man.” He was grateful that he hadn’t accidentally antagonised a career of all people. Both tributes from Two had the potential to be deadly enemies, and Rory didn’t want to make himself- or Prim by extension- a target.

He took Max’s hand, giving it a strong shake just like Gale had taught him to. “Go ahead. I have no idea how half the technology here works.” It had taken him half an hour that morning to get the shower on.

He’d already made the conscious decision to absolutely fail at this stealth test. He knew that he could probably pass it easily, and filed that knowledge away as something that could potentially help him in his private session, but he didn’t want the other tributes to know. They wouldn’t expect a thin, lovesick boy from District Twelve to be a problem.

“Let’s go at the same time?” he suggested. “I have no idea what I’m supposed to be doing in there.”

[rory-hawthorne]

maxaroha‌:

At the fists, Max rose his hands in surrender and took a step back. The guy in front of him was a bit bigger than he was and looked like he had been working his entire life. Not that Max hadn’t been working, it just looked like this guy had to while Max was training at the Academy or training with his physician. “Not looking to tango with you, man,” he said with a nervous chuckle. “Just didn’t want to take over, you know?”

Max followed the boy’s gaze, looking into the station. He had no idea what he was doing here. When he left the Academy they were only starting with some of the holographic machines to practice and stealth was more of an elective that Max decided to ignore most of the time. 

“You and me both. It’s different than what I practiced back home.” Max had to keep up the illusion that he had some training. It was the only way he could make sure he wasn’t a target and in turn make Briella one. “I think you can use holograms in this one. It’s like a test where you try to make it across the field without getting the attention of the computer-generated hunters.” 

Rory lowered his fists, taking the other boy in. It took a moment for him to place him as the tribute from Two- the one who, rumour had it, wasn’t supposed to be there at all. He’d watched the reapings from the other eleven districts on his first night in the Capitol, not wanting to sleep without doing at least one thing that might help Prim’s chances.

“Sorry. I’m just... edgy, I guess.” He was extremely out of his element. He suspected the sneakers he’d been given for the three days training were worth more than Gale’s entire salary. Rory definitely wasn’t in District Twelve anymore.

He raised an eyebrow, turning to look at the station with renewed interest. “Really?” he asked, glancing back at the boy. He didn’t dare say that he was used to being on the other side of that scenario, but his curiosity sparkled in his eyes. “Wanna try it with me?” In his mind, he heard his mother chastise his manners, and he added quietly, “My name’s Rory. Just, you know, by the way. What’s yours?”

[rory-hawthorne]

Task 003 // Paint Me Like One of your Capitol Girls

For Rory, I chose After The Hunt by William Harnett. This piece depicts a hunter’s catchings hanging up on the wall alongside their equipment. I thought it fit Rory quite well. Minus the guns, this sight is a regular one in the Hawthorne household- and with Gale in the mines, that’s thanks to Rory.

[rory-hawthorne]

maxaroha‌:

His fingers itched for a bow, the only weapon that he could use competently. Well, more than competently - top of his class before he dropped out. And whenever he had visited Briella at the Academy after that point, he would practice a little bit, not wanting to lose the skill that he had cultivated so well. 

But, when he walked into the Training Centre he opted to steer clear of the archery station and the medicine station - the two things he excelled at. Max figured he should try and look like a Career and train at some of the other weapon stations, but he also didn’t want to be around people who were going to get cut. He could handle bruises and broken bones and bodily fluids except blood. 

He hated blood. Funny coming from a guy who wanted to be a doctor. But, Max would freeze up and have to really push himself to clean up those wounds. 

So, Max approached the stealth station, something he thought was a happy medium between Career skill and no risk of blood. There was someone already there and he walked up behind them and tapped them on the shoulder. “Are you planning on using this station? I wanted to brush up on my skills,” he said. // @ttwstarters

Rory was feeling antsy about leaving Prim’s side in this strange, foreign environment. He knew it would improve their chances to branch out a little, talk to kids from outside their District’s team. Whether or not he wanted to do so was another matter entirely, but he was willing to give it a go for her sake.

He also figured it couldn’t hurt to learn a few more skills if he could. He could set snares and traps, and fire a bow. Everything else was fair game. He was debating whether or not he should try the gauntlet (if only because it looked a bit like the sort of thing Posy would enjoy, and he was missing her a little) when he felt something on his shoulder.

Whipping round, fists raised in defence, he realised quickly that the other boy didn’t seem to be looking for a fight. He’d keep his guard up though, anyway, he decided. Just in case.

He glanced at the station he happened to be in front of and shrugged. “Go ahead. I have no idea where to start with this one anyway.” He’d heard a trainer refer to it as the ‘stealth training station’, but without a carpet full of forest debris he had no idea how he was supposed to practice that at all.

[rory-hawthorne]

jackson--gates‌:

@primrxsed & @rory-hawthorne

Jackson still wasn’t feeling his best, given the fact that his knee had been bruised almost too the bone. Still, he managed to get a brace for it so he’d be able to stand for long periods of time, but his back was still aching and it hurt to breathe sometimes. He never meant for the kids to see him get taken down to the ground by a Peacekeeper and dragged off, but things happened and he couldn’t take them back now. 

He knew it wouldn’t happen again, because he had a baby to protect.

Jackson was slower getting up that morning, but he managed to make it down to the Training Center with little problem. He was still limping, but not as bad with the brace on. 

“Rory,” he said with a nod to the boy, and then looked to Prim with a gentler set of eyes, nodding to her. “…Prim.” 

As a man that came from the Seam, he knew how close the community was. He remembered what it was like when Asher died and how his old home came together to help him bury the last remnants of his family. Even when his parents died. While he couldn’t remember much of his mother, he did remember his father. Death was a normal part of living in District Twelve, probably too normal. This, however, wouldn’t stand. Jackson had to get one of them home. He didn’t care which, but he had to. 

He had to.

“I wanted to apologize for my actions on the stage, firstly,” Jackson told them both. “That’s not something I should have done nor should either of you have seen.”

“Jackson,” Rory replied with a small nod. He didn’t miss how his mentor’s eyes softened slightly as they fell on Prim, and part of him was filled with hope. The reason he’d volunteered in the first place was to get Prim home. It would help if he had someone on the outside working with him.

He tied off the bracelet he’d been making out of string while he gave Prim pointers, instead of revealing to the other twenty-two tributes in the hall that he already knew how to make a decent trap- with less than half of the resources provided at the station, no less. Handing it to Prim with a small smile, he looked back at Jackson and shook his head.

“It’s all good. Reaping Day can be rough. How are you feeling?” He’d watched Gale recover from being whipped in the square a few years back. Whatever they’d done to Jackson, he suspected it probably still hurt.

@primrxsed​

[rory-hawthorne]

Rory Hawthorne’s chariot parade outfit

As District Twelve’s chariot rolled out into the street, its riders dressed in an elegant white and gold ensemble, some thought that perhaps Cinna was beginning to lose his touch. But as the chariot moved, the gold began to flicker like sparks, growing and spreading and burning away the white until Rory and Primrose were left wearing a bright canary yellow.

[rory-hawthorne]

primrxsed‌:

“yeah,” prim said softly. she hadn’t thought this through — she thought by volunteering for thistle, she was only giving herself a death sentence, but then rory had stepped up and volunteered, and… prim sighed. “me either.” she didn’t look him in the eyes as she spoke. she was ashamed, though of what she wasn’t sure.

“you didn’t have to do that, you know.”

“Yes I did,” he replied insistently. “Gale couldn’t.” Would Gale, he wondered. Would Gale have volunteered if he’d been five years younger? Or would he have stayed behind to continue looking after his family, and spent his life regretting the fact that he hadn’t managed to keep his one promise to his best friend?

Knowing his brother, Rory felt it could go either way to be honest.

“You, however...” He sighed, lifting up a hand to ran through his hair. “You didn’t have to do that, Prim.”

[rory-hawthorne]

@primrxsed

He hadn’t had chance to talk to Prim yet. He could hardly talk to her on the Reaping stage, in front of everyone in Panem. And then they were being bundled into separate rooms in the Justice Building, and he was starting to wonder if he was ever going to be alone with her again.

It turned out all he had to do was be patient. As the train sped towards the Capitol, he slipped away and sought her out.

“This isn’t how I imagined today going,” he commented, standing in the carriage doorway.

[ttwsponsorsweekly]

COUSCOUS DALE // DISTRICT NINE

12TH PLACE // theme song: HE’S A GOOD LAD by bread

“He’s a good lad A little bit wild but his style is really gentle and kind He ain’t so bad Right to the end he’s a friend about the best you can find”

[rory-hawthorne]

dreamsbornofgrain‌:

Aspen reached for him, stretching further over the edge of the cliff hoping to grasp Couscous’ hand. It didn’t even occur to her that he would die too. There had been so many deaths already, Aspen was sure there would be no more. It was the Hunger Games, but surely it wouldn’t happen, right?

“COUSCOUS!” She yelled as she reached and found only air for comfort. Again she reached and found only air.

Aspen let out a cry as she watched him fall. Her own face mirroring the fear she saw on his moments before the fall. She couldn’t breath, but what she did know was she had to get down there. She could help him!

God, how much worse could this day possibly get?

He opened his mouth to cry out, but no sound escaped. Instead he landed hard on his back. Couscous had never realised that it was possible to have the air knocked from his lungs, not until he was suddenly struggling to remember how to breathe.

He couldn’t feel anything below his shoulders. He tried to lift his fingers, wriggle his toes, and he didn’t know if it was working. He couldn’t feel a thing, and he couldn’t move his head to see the extent of the damage either.

The jungle floor wasn’t flat. It was covered in roots and small rocks. And although Couscous couldn’t see it, couldn’t feel it, he was bleeding. He’d landed on something sharp.

He closed his eyes, tried to breathe, but if anything it seemed to be growing more difficult. He opened them again just as Aspen came back into view, and he managed to give her a reassuring smile.

This is it, he thought.

He closed his eyes again, and stopped trying.

[rory-hawthorne]

dreamsbornofgrain‌:

Aspen started to tell him perhaps he should be careful, but it happened so fast! The next thing she knew she went from watching her District partner jumping for a better look to tumbling over the since of the cliff she just climbed up over.

“Hold on!” She shouted as dropped her bag and ran over to the edge. Okay, the vine didn’t look sturdy, but she was there. “Here! Grab my hand!” Aspen told him as she slid a little closer to the edge on her stomach, reaching her hand out to him. All he had to do was grab it and Aspen could pull him up.

Couscous tried to reach up for her, but Aspen was just out of his grasp. He lowered his hand again and held onto the vine with both, trying to shift his weight along slightly so that he was a bit closer to his district partner.

He felt the vine tear more than he heard it, and looked back up Aspen with wide, frightened eyes. 

“Aspen, I’m s-” before he could finish, the vine tore away from the rocks and he fell plummeting backwards towards the jungle floor.

[rory-hawthorne]

dreamsbornofgrain‌:

Aspen turned so she could take in the view around them. It was higher than she expected! It was kind of nice up there. You could see a lot of the space around them. How different it looked from up there. The tree tops spread for what seemed like forever. 

“Probably if you look in the right direction.” The ocean had seemed to stretch forever on the boat. “It probably goes on for miles and miles.” Aspen told him as she looked around. Talking about the ocean was easier than talking about Finley or Joule, so she went with it.

He could feel the blood and the tears beginning to dry on his face. He hoped he didn’t look too terrifying. Thankfully, Aspen didn’t seem especially upset by his appearance, so he reasoned that he couldn’t look too bad.

Standing near the western side of the caves, Couscous leaned up onto his tiptoes. “I can’t see it, but it shouldn’t be too far.”

He jumped up to try and get a glimpse over the tops of the trees. And then again. And again. On the fourth time he landed badly, his foot twisting beneath him, and before he could straighten up he found himself tumbling over the edge of the rock-face.

He reached out to try to grab something- anything!- and found himself clinging to a vine growing along the rocks. 

“Aspen...” he called out. “I might need some help...”