April Showers, May flowers. // Kire JB Blitz

[charade]

Maye

The justice building was lame.

At least the one in district one had a Justice that was a person. And also hot. Maye bounced her knees up and down in worry, casually sliding a pencil into her sleeve when the peacekeeper turned to open the door. She wondered who the first one in the house to visit her would be. One of the younger ones? Well, it had to be. She was one of the older ones now, somehow. And it was her precious mini-marc that walked in, looking stunned, shocked perhaps. She was pretty stunning after all, but then again, he probably wasn’t thinking about her outfit.

“Oh my gooooood, Marzo.” She huffed dramatically, pulling him into a tight hug and accidentally stabbing him with the writing utensil she’d just hidden as she pulled him into her chest. She didn’t notice. “This sucks, this sucks this suck this fuckin suuuuucks.” Maye didn’t cry exactly, but a sound like a sob wrenched its way out of her chest and her eyes were misty. “How are you lot supposed to make up the money I make at the pawn? I mean, not that you can’t, I’m not like invaluable or anything.” She added after a moment. “Haven’t we suffered enough losses? Fuckers walking out on us and then Marc… UGH!” She threw herself backwards into the chair, narrowly avoiding pulling him down too.

“I miss Marc.” She muttered petulantly. “Marc was always the strong one, I thought…we thought he was coming back”. Nobody ever does. “Not that you’re not great, even if you can be a grumpy buttmunch half of the time.” She laughed. She was the best goddam pickpocket in district six, wasn’t she? She had that going for at least. It was something. She could make it.

 She sighed and took the watch she’d stolen during the reaping and handed it to him. “Here, you should be able to get a decent price for it.” She giggled a little but her heart wasn’t in it. “I know, I know. I’m amazing.” She was quiet for a moment, looking down and then up.

“You’ll uh, you’ll help take care of them right? More so than usual? You know, at least until I get back?”

It was a question, a lie and a wish all rolled into one.

[Kire]

Marzo Fons-Donner

Her name had shaken me of my worry for myself. I had always felt a strong draw to enter the arena, to show the world that I was the brother of Marchello and that I was proud of that, but in that moment I was dumbfounded and scared. All I could think was that it couldn't be Maye, not because she wasn't entered in the reaping - in fact she was, a good number of times and with tessera to boot - but because we couldn't afford to lose her; I couldn't afford to lose her. She was one of the only things keeping us from being put into orphanages, or starving to death in the streets. Besides, she had also known my brother. Maye was as good as my sister. No, sister doesn't quite sit right with me. She was a friend, someone I could rely on, someone I felt comfortable talking to - when she would let me talk.

The moment I entered the justice building I felt as chilled as the marble floors. My clenched hands were driven into my pockets, clutching at empty space and desperately trying to hold it close. I hadn't been able to be there for my brother, but I would be there for Maye. I had to, I couldn't let her think I would abandon her. Not when I-

The peacekeeper opens the door for me, grudgingly. I can't form my face into a smile as much as I want to. I want to comfort her as she had comforted me before, but I wasn't strong enough. Some people might applaud me for my honesty, but I just felt like a scare little boy. Yet another person was being taken from me. At least this time I had had the chance to get to know them before they were sent away to never come back.

As soon as she sees me she is talking. I knew she would, this was always how she was, but seeing it for myself eases me a bit. Somehow, she seems to be taking this better than me. "Oh my gooooood, Marzo." She grabbed me and pulled me to her, wrapping her arms around me. I winced as something sharp jabbed into my flesh but it seemed like Maye hadn't noticed. As much as I wanted to stop the pain, I had to admit that it was nice to be held by her. The moment the thought crossed my mind I felt a hot flush rise in my cheeks and I determinedly stayed both very still and very silent. It didn't matter, though, Maye was off on one of her rambles. "This sucks, this sucks this suck this fuckin suuuuucks."

Her voice held a small whine in it, and the breath that she took was hitched. I felt the spasm rock through my body, clutched as I was to her chest. Perhaps she wasn't taking this quite as well as I had thought. How could she, though? She was being sent off to- No, Maye couldn't die. My arms wrapped around her too, finally, and I forced myself to ignore the fact that my heart was beating a bit faster than normal. Now, of all times, was certainly _not_ the right moment for a discovery like this. "How are you lot supposed to make up the money I make at the pawn? I mean, not that you can’t, I’m not like invaluable or anything." Another breath, another moment for me to realize how much I will miss her. She was right, though, we really did need her.

"Haven’t we suffered enough losses? Fuckers walking out on us and then Marc… UGH!" With her exclamation of mixed frustration and disgust she flopped backwards. Her arms had released me only a split second before and I was nearly dragged with her before I was able to let go. I was sure my face was super flushed by this point; the image of me landing in her lap sent hot waves of mingled fear and embarrassment through me. "I miss Marc. Marc was always the strong one, I thought…we thought he was coming back." That, finally, was able to help me to settle the strange feeling in my gut. Hearing her talk about my brother in that way, that admiring way that she had, both made me proud and... no, just proud - it had to just be pride. Still, pride shouldn't feel quite so sour in my gut. "Not that you’re not great, even if you can be a grumpy buttmunch half of the time." Her rush to assure me wasn't enough for me to save face, but it did put a small twitch in the corner of my mouth.

She laughed then. Even though she was laughing at me I still liked her laugh, it was real, it was something I could make happen. Best of all, it meant that even in some small way I made her happy. Now, more than ever, I was glad for that. Digging around in her pockets, she pulled out a handful of items. I gaped slightly at them, especially when she held them out to me. I took them, hesitating for a moment as our fingers touched. "Here, you should be able to get a decent price for it." This time, her mirth was not nearly as heartfelt. "I know, I know. I’m amazing." She looks down, betraying the fear I had sensed. I wanted to put the object aside and take her by the hands, but simply closed my fingers around the items instead.

Her eyes pierce me as she looks back up at me. I feel rooted to the spot, struck dumb by the pleading in her face. She had always been so confident, so sure of everything. Now, under the weight of her own peril along with the world that they had all placed on her shoulders, she was beginning to falter. "You’ll uh, you’ll help take care of them right? More so than usual? You know, at least until I get back?" Quickly I nodded. This was one part of her burden I could take, one thing I could promise her. If the knowledge that I was taking care of the other kids would make this whole ordeal even the slightest bit easier for her to handle then I would do it. Besides, I couldn't leave the others to fend for themselves, we were a family. "I will, Maye. I promise I will." My voice cracked on the word promise. I couldn't tell if emotion was getting to me or if the last hints of puberty were still making themselves known.

This time I couldn't stop myself from touching her. I placed my hand on her forearm, leaning down slightly in order to do so. "Maye I-" Suddenly my face was much closer to hers than I had intended, even though there was still a foot of empty air between us. I felt like backpedaling, like turning and running. I couldn't do that though, I couldn't just leave. My voice held a puppy's whine as I tried to speak again.

"Come back, okay?"

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[charade]

Maye

Once upon a time she might have felt something unrequited for Marchello Donner. There had never been a right time to say it, not when they’d been thrust into being among the few in charge when the older kids had left them. Not when she spent her days sneaking her hands into pockets, purses and wallets. Not when she spent her nights tallying up how much she should be able to get at the pawn, and then haggling with the bastard to get a better deal. Not when she collapsed exhausted into her bed.

Not when he’d been reaped.

Even if it killed her to see him hanging around with that other blond, at least until he’d started making overtures at his district partner. I will Marc, I promise I will. She’d taken care of the clan as best as she could for a few years, but it seemed that life had other plans. And now, here she was, asking his brother to do the same. Things had come full circle. She could only hope that the fickle finger of fate would keep away from Marzo.

His voice cracked and she snickered in spite of herself. When he’d first shown up she’d written him off as a boy playing at being a man, living in the shadow of his brother. But he was more than that. She wished she had realized that sooner. But talking about meaningful things was hard and depressing when you couldn’t get the right words out.

“Come back okay?”

She raised her eyebrows when he touched her forearm, thinking of something flirty to say on instinct, but forcing herself to hold her tongue. This was serious; was supposed to be serious, and she could try to lend some kind of dignity to the situation. Not that that sentiment lasted long. Serious is lame. She'd wondered every now and then if any of the boys in the house found her attractive, but she never brought it up, it'd be weird right? They were the closest things they had to family, no need to complicate things. Still, his hand was touching her arm, and his face was closer than it had ever been. If she was going to the gallows, she could do it with a smile, if not for herself, for him. For all of them.

“C’mon, this is me we’re talking about,”She crowed, “ What do I always say? Keep ‘em looking at this,” she continued, pointing several fingers at her chest and trailing them up and down her body while snaking her other arm around him to pinch his posterior. “So they don’t know what your hands are doing. The other tributes won’t know what hit them.” She gave him a grin that could have been cheeky or flirty, but was one hundred percent her before a crafty look entered her eyes.

“So, you gonna give me a kiss for good luck, or am I gonna have to steal one?” she asked challengingly, closing the distance between their faces.

They both knew that her chances were slim, but it was nice to pretend otherwise.

It was nice to remain a bubbly, flirty ray of sunshine for as long as she could.

[Kire]

Marzo Fons-Donner

I watched her eyebrows rise and wondered if I had gone too far. The embarrassment and fear were tangled in my stomach like a giant burr and I could barely swallow. I could almost see her teeth clamping down on her tongue, could almost hear the teasing she held back on. When a smile crept up the side of her jaw and into the corner of her mouth I felt both more at ease and more scared. "C’mon, this is me we’re talking about." The smile was a terrible threat, promising me more embarrassment and not a little excitement. She was genially poking fun at me now, like she always had. "What do I always say? Keep ‘em looking at this," My eyes involuntarily followed her hand as it traced its way down her form. I could barely breathe anymore, let alone swallow. Desperately I tried to pull my eyes away.

A quick pain in the seat of my pants was enough of a shock to look her in the face again. The moment I put two and two together - which was a long moment considering my brain didn't have much oxygen going to it at this point - I was almost mortified, almost. "So they don’t know what your hands are doing. The other tributes won’t know what hit them." The grin on her face wasn't making me feel any better. If she was trying to comfort me she was doing the exact opposite. I was distinctly unnerved, uncomfortable, and still just as worried as before, if not more so.

The new look in her eye really wasn't helping.

"So, you gonna give me a kiss for good luck, or am I gonna have to steal one?" Despite my best efforts, my mouth was open. I was stunned that she would ask, that she would want, that she would care. Did she know? How could she, I didn't really know for myself. I was dumbfounded again, but this time it was almost pleasant - except that I felt like a complete fool. She had to be mocking me, absolutely had to.

Her face was coming closer and I was able to smell the scent of her hair. I closed my mouth so fast that I bit my tongue. "I- Maye-" I moved closer for all my brain was screaming at me. I was the biggest idiot in all of Panem but somehow I didn't care right now. "It's not nice to tease someone like this." But I had kissed her before she could have even registered my words.

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[charade]

Maye

Marzo was so easy to mess with.  He was endearing. 

It was a hoot. But he seemed worried now. It was so sweet of him, worrying about her like that. Being concerned for the well-being of her mental state. Cause what else did he have to be worried about in the justice building with her? Although maybe the look on his face was because he was upset that she was funning with him? He mumbled something under his breath and she started to ask him what it was when he went for it. She’d expected a little more hesitancy, but she rolled with it.

She grabbed the front of his shirt and kept him steady, teasing his bottom lip with her teeth before her tongue found its way inside and traced the roof of his mouth. She could smell a little bit of the soap he’d used that morning on his skin, and maybe a hint of the bacon and eggs the house had for breakfast. She inhaled deeply, internally bemoaning the life she could have had, the life she’d kept on hold for too long. The life that was slipping through her fingers like dandelion seeds on the wind.

When she pulled away, she shivered as something went up her spine and let out a pleased sigh, wiping a smudge of scarlet lipstick off of his face with her thumb and fixing the silver comb in her hair. “You’ll have to get some more practice in, cutie.” He wasn’t Marc, but he was close enough. He was Marzo, and she liked him too. She was Maye, and she was terrified. Not as much now that she could taste him on her lips. “A guy like you’d make the right girl feel special someday.” She hoped it calmed him. It was the only way she knew how to show him she cared.

It had definitely taken the edge off for her. Maye stretched, reaching for the ceiling and arching her back until she heard a satisfying pop. Then she crossed her legs and rested her arms on the little table in the room. “Love you Marzipan, my little hunk of a man. Pass it along to rest of house will you? Uh, the sentiment, not the kiss,” she chuckled lasciviously, patting the side of his face with palm. “I’ll be back before you know it.”