Smooth and incredibly soft, there was a wonderful feeling to the vibrant red velvet that connected her two wrists like a shash, attached to two cuffs and threaded behind her back. It was the only colour that they had dressed her in aside from the dashes of makeup they had used to try and cover the deep dark circles and sunken lines of malnourishment. She had to give them credit for having tried to hide the signs of poor health and torture, but Terra could barely recognize herself in the mirror. She was so thin now, skin pulling taunt over her sharp edges and it looked so dead, sickly.

Her hair, much cleaner than before, was dry despite the products and pulled up into the twin buns on top her head.

The top was small, shirt sleeves hanging off to reveal her shoulders, the top revealing a sliver of her stomach while her pants puffed out and cinched at the bottom. It was the worst of the outfits she had ever worn but it was the only one that they had for her that covered all the abuse, as they had told her. Terra hated how it looked on her, how it made her look as though she might belong in the Capitol with clothes that would never fit in among the districts, more so with the completely white, completely clean appearance.

She fingered the red collar around her throat, a mockery of one of her districts traditions, and the little bell that had been attached there, golden and shining.

Guards came in and began to shove her along, making sure not to touch her too long and she made sure to drag her feet just to bother them.

She knew she had to do it but that didn't mean she had to enjoy it. Her stylists had given her hope that maybe there would be a chance for something better, a chance for them to get away, to leave for something better. If the Capitol had people willing to help them, to harbour them, than maybe there could be hope for them to arrange for their freedom now that her stylists had seen what was being done - and she hoped, that maybe, the rest of the Capitol would feel the same about saving them after seeing the way that she and Peeta looked.

Because she could see him now, eyes sunken and a twitch to him, a nervous tick and wild, almost crazed gleam in his eyes. His suit was all white, matching her own, and his tie, bordered by a sharp, spiked looking collar, was a vibrant red to match her, the only spot of colour.

Terra didn't understand the fashion choice but as they were both lead inside and directed to sit in elevated chairs with a metal foot rest attached, and she spotted Presideny Snow being escorted away dressed all in white with a red rose tucked into his clothes, it all suddenly made more sense.

Egeria came to stand before them, a smug little grin pulling at her lips thag sent a shiver down her spine. She could imagine the way the blood would spurt from her throat if he slashed at it, how it would feel warm over her fingers. She didn't think she would feel guilty about this one, not when she could see thd sheer joy reflected in her eyes as she beheld what bad shape they were in.

"You are to highlight the damage done to the districts, plead for a cease-fire on a united front," they're instructed and the woman's smile widens at their frozen, attentive state. "Hold hands if you must, present a united front, cry. Do not let anything slip."

She's gone as soon as she's arrived and there's a crew this time with a monitor directing them on what to say, words highlighting the screen, glowing bright in the dark section of the room. Guards stand around them, just off screen out of sight like these looming figures that were enough of a threat to keep them in line.

The Capitol's athem played and she stilled, clasping Peeta's hand tightly with her own as he began a speech about cease-fire and damage. Something about a water tower in 7, a derailed train, a bombing to a water purification plant.

The image is sudden, shocking, and Peeta's flinching away from her, blinking at the scene of Katniss standing on top a pile of rubble.

It's gone almost as soon and Peeta sits there, distracted, and Terra could see people waving for her attention in the background.

"There was a fire that result in a collapsing granary, stamped that caused the destruction of the station in 10, and a series of attacks at other train stations that have resulted in a limited supply of food," Terra reads, her voice shaky as she lays a hand on Peeta's arm. "These attacks caused by the Rebels are reason to keep vigilant and until the situation is back under control the Capitol urges you to-"

Her heart stutters, freezing, and her breath catches in her throat. "Finnick?" She chokes, gaping at the screen that showed her only a few seconds of him speaking about a past tribute.

She slips forward in her seat slightly, mouth working wordlessly at the image of them that flickers back into place. She could still see the picture of him, clean and healthy, lingering in her mind, behind her eyelids.

There's a pressure behind her eyes, and the sound of yelling as more rebel footage flickers on screen in between there own broadcast, and Egeria is at their side, yelling at them to shut off the broadcast. There's people shouting at them, poking at their backs and shaking their shoulders. Peeta stumbles on his words as he tried to rush through the rest of the announcement, not knowing what to do.

"We'll wrap this up later, when the rebels aren't set on disrupting the distribution they find incriminating," Egeria snaps, waving her hands around before turning to them once she notices they have control over the broadcast for a bit. "Peeta, Terra, are there any words for the rebels, for Katniss and Finnick, that you would like yo share?"

Her mouth parts slightly, thinking of Finnick and how nice it was to see him, and decides that if she was to die for firmly shaking her head to tell them no, that she wasn't going to regret it. Because he looked so good, so wonderful, and she hadn't realised how much she truly missed him until now.

Dropping from her seat and brushing off the front of her pants, Terra made to leave until she heard Petta talking.

"Katniss . . .how do you think this will end? What will be left? No one's safe. Not in the Capitol - " Terra gasps, reaching for him as though in slow motion, glancing fearfully at the cameras, "- not in the Districts. And you . . . in Thirteen . . . " he inhales sharpl, as if fighting for air, his eyes look insane. "Dead by morning!"

Everything bursts into motion at that. Egeria is screaming to end the broadcast before Snow returns and hands are grabbing at her and Peeta. He tries to continue speaking, lunging for the camera, and Terra slips into his place, flipping the stulid velvet sash to the front and using one of the chairs to launch herself at one of the peacekeepers, wrapping the sash around their neck and yanking the helmet off. Terra landed hard on her side and scrambled to her feet in time to avoid the butt of a gun aiming for the back of her head.

She turned back, grabbing the gun and yanking it the best she could as he fought to move her. Tripping over herself backwards, she fell over the back of a chair, back bending as he pushed the gun across her chest, pinning her, and Terra choked at the pressure.

Slipping her hand up, she wrapped the sash the best she could around his neck and pulled both ends as hard as she could, thankful they were attached to her wrists even though she could feel the cuffs slipping and puling harshly against her hands.

Tipping her head back, she looked to the boy being pressed to the floor and the camera that was falling over and pulled tighter on the red velvet enough to make her arms shake as she used it to slowly pull him up, bringing her feet up to flip him over her head with a drawn out groan. They both went tumbling over with her landing on his stomach with a knee in his chest that made it crack and ache. Terra snatched a fistful of his hair and smashed his head down on the tile floor twice. His eyes rolled back with a flutter and she socked his once just for the sake of it before hastily unwrapping the sash.

She reached for him, jumping on the back of the peacekeeper holding him down, spinning into the cameras and listening as they crashed to the floor behind her, smacking loud and she could have sworn she heard the breaking of glass.

"Peeta, get up!" She urged, rising throwing herself back on top of the guard and pulled at his helmet. "Move, Peeta!"

She wrapped her hands around the slim neck of the woman beneath her, a girl that couldntbe much older than herself and pressed down with all her weight. The guard choked, lifting her hands to hit at Terra and she ducked down headbutting her hard enough to see stats dance across her vision, making her sway slightly.

A hand grabs at her hair and yanks, crying out her head is jerked back, exposing her throat and she could feel something cool pressed to her temple. It guides her back, shuffling her on her knees to where the chairs were next to where someone is hitting Peeta and blood is splattering across her face.

Her screams starts low in her spine, building across her nerves until it burst from her lips with a loud piercing shriek, terrified of the way he seems to be crumpling or the red that speckled over the floor and slid down her cheeks, she wasn't sure, but the hand in her hair jerks her around, her wrist are heeld back by the sash binding them, and her head is smacking against the tiles painfully, a distressing flash of light showing across her vision and Terra finds herself incredibly heavy as she sinks down onto the floor.

A shot sounds through the room followed by an electrical sizzle as the camera dies and a tapping of approaching steps follows closely, white dress shoes cross her blurry vision and stop before her face.

Someone turns her head amd Terra tries to focus on the looming white of the finger that hovers over her.

"Bring them back to their rooms," Snow says, his voice startlingly controlled. "If Miss Combe wishes to behave like an animal then we will treat her as such, as for Mister Mellark, I have special plans for him."

She heaved up, feeling heavy and incredibly tired she's little good as her feet drag across the floors until she's dropped in the glass chamber as Johanna bangs and screams from within her cell, reaching her hands through the bars and clawing at anything yo come close. They had taken to chaining her ankle to hold her in place.

Terra falls to her side as they let her go. The guards going through the familiar motions of chaining her up. It made sense now, why she had always had such a higher degree of security placed on her and it was terrifying to realise it had nothing to do with security at all. They had only wanted to make her feel horrible, less than she was like some sort of animal that needed to be chained up and contained. As though she was wild and less deserving of human decency, all because she gave her life to try and protect her friends.

As they pulled out something new, a thick metal collar and snapped it around her neck, forcing her to stay on all fours and the burning of the brand pressed into her ribs, Terra wished she was dead.

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2019-02-26