Chapter Text
Katniss is trying to get to sleep after a long day's hunting and trading.
She is exhausted but sleep is evading her. It is a week before the reaping for the 74th Hunger Games therefore the tensions in district 12 are extremely high.
katniss refuses to allow herself to be worried about the reaping at this point in time because it doesn't help her put food on the table.
But recently Prim has been losing sleep over it because this is her first year eligible for the reading and with me refusing to allow her to sign up for the tesserae she only has one slip of paper in thousands so the odds are in her favour. But that one slip is enough for her to panic. She has only just been able to sleep next to her seconds before.
Listening to her breathing Katniss manages to focus on it and allow it to lull her to a fitfull sleep.
When she wakes up she notices that she is not in her and Prim's room like she was when she went to sleep.
And around her she notices a group of people.
The victor Haymitch Abernathy, a man she recognises almost instantly as Finnick Odair and one other person that surprises her more than it should. The boy with the bread.
Not knowing what else to do Katniss moves away from the group and waits for the others in the room to wake.
Then slowly one by one they all wake up and look around.
"What the hell?" Haymitch says vocalising what they are all thinking.
"This is not where I went to sleep." Finnick says scanning the room.
"Are you alright?" Peeta asks clearly not knowing what else to do with himself Katniss and she nods slowly and subtly.
"You?" She asks back to him.
He nods back hesitently.
"Haymitch?" Finnick says to the other victor confused.
"We're as clueless as you." Haymitch says to him his voice slightly slurred.
"Who are you two?" Finnick asks acknowledging the two in the room.
"Katniss."
"Peeta."
So that was the boys name.
"Do you know why we are here?" Finnick then asks only to get a round of no's from the others.
"I'm gonna get more booze." Haymitch says staggering to the door on the other side of the room much to Katniss's annoyance.
Only the door doesn't budge.
Everyone seems to watch Haymitch struggle with the door deciding that he is just too drunk to know how it works but then they realise that he isn't that drunk to be failing this hard.
The newly named Peeta then gets up and decides to help Haymitch with the door and he can't open it either.
Katniss is fighting hard to keep her face neutral as the situation sinks in.
Peeta lets go of the door as if it burns him and then starts pacing around the room as if thinking.
"So he have been brought here in our sleep with 3 random people and we can't leave." Haymitch sums up before sitting down.
"There's this." Peeta says noticing it while pacing.
He walks over carrying a book with a note on top.
He gives the book to Haymitch who is closes before reading the note.
To everyone in the reading room,
I apologise for the methods used to get you here. I needed you to hear this. This book is one of three. They details the next few years from the point of view from one of the key players. You have been the ones selected to hear this. Learn and grow from these events as they are all true and use the information to make the end of the story less soaked in blood and pain. Good luck and there's a from off to the side for privacy. This will not be easy for any of you but it will be helpful.
"So that answers your question." Katniss says breaking the silent shock in the room.
"I don't know what I was expecting but that is the opposite." Peeta says staring at the note in his hands.
Katniss peaks her head through the door and sees 4 bedrooms with their names on. She tells the others this and they all poke their heads into their rooms to see all basic living necessities and a change of clothes as they are all in their pyjamas. When everyone is ready everyone see's all the chairs mysteriously placed in a circle so they can all see each other.
"At least we won't have to shout over our shoulders at each other." Peeta says moving over to his chair.
Everyone finds a chair with varying degrees of success (Haymitch falls over it) and seeing the curse book in the middle of the room.
Haymitch grabs it and Katniss notices he is less drunk than last night.
"I might as well kick this off." He says before opening the book and seeing.
PART 1 - The Tributes