Chapter 14 Chapter 14 The Haymitch Video

I stood by the window for a long time, looking at my hometown that was fading away, submerged in the depths of the jungle.This time, I had no hope of returning home.Before the last contest, I promised Prim that I would do everything possible to win, but this time I vowed to do everything possible to keep Peeta alive.I will never set foot on my way home again. Before I left, I had already thought about saying goodbye to my family and friends.It would be nice to say goodbye to them first, and then close and lock the door, and they would be safe at home, sad though they were.However, even this wish was taken away by the Capitol.

"Let's write home, Katniss," Peeta said, standing behind me. "It'll be nice, to give them a little memory of us. Haymitch will send us a letter...if we need to." I nodded, then turned and went straight back to my room.I sat on the edge of the bed and thought to myself, I'll never write those letters, it's like writing a speech in memory of Lulu and Salish in Eleven.What should be said is installed in my mind, I can think clearly, and I can even speak clearly.However, once it is put into writing, the words will not express the meaning.Besides, I want to give them not only words, but hugs, kisses, strokes of Prim's hair, strokes of Gale's face, and March's hand; I don't want to give them a letter , a letter sent back with my cold, stiff body.

My heart hurts too much to cry, I just want to curl up in bed until I get to the Capitol tomorrow morning.But, I still have a mission, no, not just a mission, it's my dying wish—to keep Peeta alive.What a difficult task with the Capitol wrathful, so I want to be at my best during the game.This cannot be done while mourning and worrying for every loved one back home.Let them go, I said to myself, say goodbye to them, forget about them.I tried my best to think about them one by one in my heart, and then like a bird, I released them from the depths of my heart, and then closed the door of my heart, never letting them back.

When Effie knocked on the door and told me to go to dinner, my heart was completely relieved, and I felt relieved, which was not bad. The atmosphere at the dinner table was very depressing, and the long loneliness was broken only by the interlacing of cups and plates when the food was served.Today's meal was cold vegetable soup, creamy lime fish pie, chicken roasted in orange sauce with wild rice and watercress, and chocolate brioche with strawberries. Peeta and Effie chattered back and forth, but soon fell silent. "I like your new haircut, Effie," Peeta said. "Thanks. I made this hairstyle specifically to go with Katniss' brooch, and I was thinking of getting you a gold bracer and maybe a gold bracelet for Haymitch or something, so we look like a team." Effie said.

Apparently, Effie didn't know that my brooch was now a rebel symbol, at least in District Eight.On the Capitol, Mockingjay remains the mascot for the exciting Hunger Games.What else could it mean?True rebels would not engrave such secret symbols on items such as jewelry.They'll toast it on top of their bread and gobble it up in seconds if necessary. "I think that's a great idea," Peeta said. "What do you think, Haymitch?" "Yeah, anything," Haymitch said.He wasn't drinking, but I could tell he wanted to.Effie sees Haymitch struggling to restrain herself and has her drink taken away as well.Haymitch was in pain.If he's a "tribute," he owes nothing to Peeta and can drink as much as he wants.And now, he's going to do whatever it takes to keep Peeta alive in the arena -- a place full of his old friends -- and he probably won't.

"Maybe we should get you a wig too." I tried teasing him.He just glanced at me to say leave me alone, so we ate the cake in silence. "How about we watch the old videos?" Effie said while wiping the corners of her mouth with a white nylon napkin. Peeta went back to get the winner's notebook, and everyone else went to the passenger car to watch the game tape.After everyone was seated, the national anthem was played, and the annual lottery ceremony of the twelve districts was shown on TV. Of the seventy-five victors in the history of the Hunger Games, only fifty-nine are still alive. I saw them on TV when they competed or served as instructors, and I recently watched them before. video, so I can recognize most of them.Some victors were old and feeble, others were plagued by illness, others were drinking and drugging, and so on.It is conceivable that the winners from District 1, District 2, and District 4 were the most, but each district sent at least one male and female winner.

Judging from the video, the lottery ceremony went quickly, and Peeta carefully put asterisks next to the names of the players selected in each district.Haymitch, expressionless, watched silently as his old friends took to the stage one by one.Effie commented in a low voice, "Oh, don't choose Cecelia." "Well, Chaff always likes to fight." The words were melancholy, and she kept sighing. I try to keep those players in my head, but just like last year, there are only a few that I can remember clearly.A classically beautiful brother and sister from District 1 who had won two consecutive Hunger Games when I was little.Brutal, a volunteer player from District Two, looked at least forty years old and couldn't wait to get into the arena.Finnick, the handsome blond kid from District Four, who had won the contest ten years ago at fourteen.A neurotic woman with long brown hair from District Four was also drawn, but she was quickly replaced as a volunteer by an eighty-year-old woman who had to use a cane to get on stage.Next on stage was Johanna Mason, the only living female victor in District Seven, who won the contest years ago by pretending to be an underdog.The woman Effie called Cecilia from District Eight, who looked to be in her thirties, had to be pulled apart by her three children before she went on stage.Chaff, from District 11, I know he's a special friend of Haymitch's and one of the chosen ones.

My name was called, followed by Haymitch, and then Peeta volunteered in his place.One of the "tribute" posters even got watery eyes, because our District 12 "star lovers" seemed to be in a bad place.Afterwards, she collected herself and declared: "I dare say this will be the best match ever!" Haymitch left the car without a word, and Effie, after some ramblings, bid us good night.I just sat there and watched Peeta tear the list of players who weren't drawn out of the book. "Why don't you go to sleep?" he said. Because I can't handle that horrible nightmare, and I can't do without you.I thought to myself.I'm going to have nightmares tonight, and I want Peeta to sleep with me, but I can't open my mouth.We haven't touched each other since the day Gale was beaten.

"What are you going to do?" I asked. "Look at the notes again. Find out what we're doing at the game. I'll see you in the morning. Go to sleep, Katniss," he said. Helpless, I had to go to bed.As I expected, I woke up from a nightmare a few hours later, and the old lady from District 4 had turned into a huge rodent, and she jumped at me.I knew I must have screamed, but no one came.Peeta didn't show up, not even the Capitol attendant.I put on my nightgown and tried to calm down so that the goosebumps would go away.Staying in my box was out of the question and I wanted to call for someone to get me some tea or hot chocolate or something.Maybe Haymitch wasn't asleep, well, he definitely wasn't.

From the waiter I ordered hot milk, the most sedative drink I know.Hearing voices from the TV compartment, I walked over to find Peeta there.Beside him lay a videotape of past games that Effie had found.I recognized one of the tapes from the year Pluto won. Peeta sees me, stands up, and turns off the video. "Can't sleep?" "I can't sleep for too long," I said.Thinking of the animal that the old woman had turned into made me tighten my nightgown again. "Want to chat for a while?" he asked.Chatting does help sometimes, but I just shake my head, feeling vulnerable at the thought of being haunted by an opponent before the game even starts.

Peeta holds out his arms to me, and I immediately throw myself into his arms.For the first time since the announcement of Xtreme Century, Peeta has shown me affection.Some time ago, he was more like a strict coach, very strict and persistent.Haymitch and I were running faster, eating more, and getting to know our opponents better and better.lover?Forget it, he didn't even bother pretending to be my friend.Before he ordered me to keep going, I wrapped my arms around his neck tightly.He pulled me closer and buried his face in my hair.His lips touched my neck, and a warm current spread from the point of his touch to my whole body.It felt so good, so good, and I knew I would never let him go first. Why do you want to do this?I've said goodbye to Gale and I'm pretty sure I'll never see him again.Nothing I do now will hurt him.Either he couldn't see it, or he thought I was acting in front of the camera.Thinking about it this way, at least, my heart is more relaxed. A Capitol waiter came in with hot milk and we had to part.He was carrying a tray with a porcelain jug containing steaming milk and two cups beside it. "I took an extra glass," he said. "Thank you." I said. "I add a little honey to the milk to sweeten it and put a little seasoning on it," he said, looking at us as though he had something to say, then shook his head slightly and walked out of the room. "What's the matter with him?" I said. "He feels sorry for us, I think," Peeta said. "That's right," I said, pouring some milk. "Honestly, not all Capitols want to see us or the other winners go back," Peeta said. "They've fallen in love with their champions." "I guess, once the bloody fight started, they stopped thinking about love or not." I said flatly.Yeah, if there's one thing I don't have time to think about, it's how XXX will affect the mood of the Capitol. "Why, do you want to watch all the videos again?" "I can't say, I just want to take another rough look and get familiar with the survival skills of each player." Peeta said. "Who's next?" I asked. "You take your pick," Peeta said to me, holding up the box of videotapes in his hand. The tape is marked with the year of the competition and the names of the contestants.I rummaged through it, and suddenly found a videotape that I hadn't seen before. The year on it was 50, which was the second century limit race, and the winner's name was Haymitch Abernathur. "We've never seen this set," I said. Peeta shook his head, "No, I know Haymitch doesn't want us to watch it. It's the same reason we don't want to watch our own game tape. Since we're on a team, it doesn't matter if I want to." "Any tapes of the twenty-fifth Hunger Games?" I asked. "I'm afraid not. Whoever that person is, he must be dead by now, and Effie only brought over the videotapes of possible opponents." Peeta took Haymitch's videotapes and weighed them in his hand, "What? You Think we should watch this?" "This is the only video of the century race, maybe we can find something useful." I said.Saying this, I felt quite awkward in my heart, as if I was spying on Haymitch's privacy.I don't know why I feel that way, anyway, it's an open secret.But that's how I feel.I have to admit, I'm curious about this. "You don't have to tell Haymitch we've seen it." "Fine." Peeta agrees.He put the tape down and I sat on the couch, milk in hand, curled up next to him.I sink into fifty Hunger Games while sipping milk with honey and flavors.After the national anthem was played, President Snow in the video pulled out an envelope, and the card inside contained the rules for the second Century Xtreme Race.President Snow was younger then, but just as repulsive.He announced the regulations on the card with the same heavy tone when he spoke to us. In order to commemorate the "Century Xtreme Race", this year's Xtreme Race will have twice the number of previous years.The TV director immediately switched the screen to the scene of the lottery ceremony. On the screen, the host announced the names of the selected contestants one after another. The video played to District 12 and it hurts my heart to see those chosen children dying.A woman, not Effie, was in charge of announcing the names of the children selected in District 12, but like Effie, she also said "ladies first."She pronounced the name of a girl, "Mesley Donner," who was from the Seam, as could be seen from her appearance. "Oh!" I yelled. "She's my mother's friend." The camera found her in the crowd, and she was standing next to two other girls, both of whom had blonde hair, apparently belonging to a businessman. child. "I think it must be your mom hugging her," Peeta said softly.He was right.As Mesley Doner bravely walked up to the stage, I caught a glimpse of my mother, who was about my age at the time, and she was, without exaggeration, beautiful.Another girl who looked like Maysley held her hand and kept crying, but she also looked more like someone else I knew. "March," I said. "That's her mom, and she and Maysley are like twins," Peeta said. "My dad used to talk about it." I thought of March's mom, Mayor Andersey's wife.Suffering from pain disorders, she spent most of her life paralyzed in bed, cut off from the outside world.I never thought she had such a relationship with her mother, no wonder March brought painkillers for Gail on a snowy night.I now finally understand the special meaning of my mockingjay brooch, which originally belonged to March's Aunt Maisley Donner - a "tribute" who lost her life in the arena. The last one to say Haymitch's name.I was even more surprised to see him then than I was to see my mother. He was young, strong, handsome even.His hair was black and curly, and his gray eyes in the Seam were bright, and even then, menacing. "Oh, Peeta, you don't think he killed Maysley, do you?" I blurted out.Somehow, I can't stand this kind of speculation. "There were forty-eight guys at the time, and I thought it was unlikely," Peeta said. The floats of the contestants entered the field, and the contestants from the 12th district wore the ugly overalls of coal miners. The camera flashed by, and each contestant appeared in the video for a short time.Since Haymitch was the victor, he and Caesar Flickman are shown in full in the film.In the film, Caesar wears the glittering navy blue evening gown that he always wears, except that his hair, eyelashes and lips are dark green. "So, Haymitch, what do you think about having more than twice the usual number of contestants?" Caesar asked. Haymitch shrugged: "I don't think it's any different. They're going to be just as stupid as they were before, so I guess my odds of winning aren't much different than they were before." There was a burst of laughter from the audience, and Haymitch gave them a wry smile that was haughty, sly, and nonchalant. "He wins games effortlessly, right?" I said. The next morning, as the match begins, the camera cuts to the point of view of one of the "tributes" as the audience sees her rise from the basement to the surface and then into the arena.The scene in the arena was really breathtaking, and the faces of the contestants showed astonishment, even Haymitch's eyes lit up, but he quickly frowned again. What jumps into people's sight is an incomparably beautiful place. The golden horn of Zeus stands on the green lawn full of flowers, white clouds float in the blue sky, and beautiful songbirds are dancing their wings in the sky.From the air, the lawn stretches for miles.By the way, some contestants were flapping their noses, and it could be seen that there must be a fresh floral fragrance in the air.On one side of the arena, dense forests loomed, and on the other side, majestic snow-capped mountains soared into the sky. This beautiful scenery fascinated some players, and when the gong sounded, they woke up like a dream.However, Haymitch was different.He charged like an arrow to the Horn of Zeus, snatched up weapons and a pack of supplies, and was off into the jungle before the others had time to leave the disk on which they stood. On the first day, eighteen players died in bloody fights.Others were dying, too, and as time went on it became clear that almost everything in this beautiful place—the fresh fruit hanging from the branches, the water running in the clear brook—was It is deadly poisonous, and even the fragrance of the flowers is poisonous if inhaled directly into the lungs.Only food from rain and the Horn of Zeus is safe.In addition, pro players form alliances of up to ten people to hunt down opponents. Haymitch also encountered trouble in the jungle. The golden fluffy squirrels turned out to be carnivores, and they would attack humans in groups; the poisonous sting of the butterfly would cause great pain, if not death.But he kept going forward, leaving the snow mountains far behind. Maisley Dona is also a resourceful girl, she only took a small backpack when she left the Horn of Zeus.In the backpack were a bowl, some beef jerky, and a blowgun with twenty-four darts.She made the most of what she had, dipping her darts in ready-made venom, and before long turned her blowgun into a deadly weapon.She shoots a poison dart into her opponent, killing him. Within four days, the picturesque snow-capped mountains turned into volcanoes, claiming the lives of twelve more people, including five professional players.When the snowy mountain was ejecting lava, the grass had no place to hide, which forced the remaining thirteen players to hide in the jungle, including Haymitch and Maisley. Haymitch seems to like going in one direction, and that's away from the volcano.But some maze of dense hedges forced him back into the heart of the jungle, where he encountered three pros and drew a knife to fight them.The pros were big and heavy, but Haymitch was so nimble that he killed two while the third snatched his knife.When the third pro was about to cut his throat, he was hit by a poisoned dart and fell to the ground dead. Mesley Donner came out of the woods and said, "We'll live longer if we do it together." "I think you just proved it." Haymitch said while rubbing his neck, "We teamed up?" Meisley nodded.They quickly formed an alliance. If a person still wants to go back to his hometown to face his fellow villagers, then this alliance cannot be broken. Like me and Peeta, they do a great job together.They get more rest and share food from dead opponents.Haymitch still kept going. "Why?" Meisley was always asking, but he kept ignoring her, and he didn't answer until she refused to go any further without an answer. "Because there's got to be an edge to this place, right?" Haymitch said. "Arenas can't be endless." "Then what do you want to find?" Meisley asked. "I can't tell, maybe there's something we can use," he said. Using a blowpipe left behind by a dead pro, they finally made it through the hedge to flat, dry land that ran down to a cliff.Under the cliff, you can see jagged rocks. "This is where you're looking for, Haymitch, let's go back," Mesley said. "No, I'm staying here," he said. "Okay. Now there are only five people left, maybe now we should say goodbye too," she said. "I don't want to end up with you and me." "Okay." He agreed.That was the case, she left, and he didn't offer to shake her hand, or even look at her. Haymitch continued to walk around the edge of the cliff, as if to find some kind of opening.His foot hit a pebble, and the stone fell into the abyss where it should have disappeared into the depths of the cliff.But a minute later, as he sat down to rest, the pebble bounced back and landed beside him.Haymitch stared at the rock, puzzled, and then his eyes lit up.He threw another fist-sized rock over the cliff, and waited.He laughed when the stone bounced back and landed in his hand. At this time, Melis's shout came from a distance, their alliance relationship has been terminated under her proposal, and it is understandable that Haymitch no longer lends a helping hand at this time.But Haymitch ran in the direction of her call.When he got there, he saw a group of pink birds pecking at her neck with their long sharp beaks.When she was dying, he held her hand.At this time, I thought of Lulu. At that time, I was also one step too late and failed to save her. That same day, another contestant is killed in a fight and another is eaten by a man-eating squirrel, leaving Haymitch and a girl from District 1 for the final fight.She was taller than him and as agile as he.They had a violent and bloody fight, both of whom were mortally wounded, and Haymitch was eventually stripped of his weapon.With his hand on his bowels that were about to come out of his body, he staggered and fled desperately through the beautiful jungle, while she, walking equally hard, pursued him with an ax in her hand; fatal blow.Haymitch ran towards the edge of the cliff, and just as he came to the edge, her ax flew at him.He fell to the ground, and the ax flew down the abyss.At this point, neither of them had any weapons.The girl stood there, trying to stop the blood bubbling from her sunken eye sockets.And Haymitch was already lying on the ground, twitching all over.Maybe she was thinking that she could outlast Haymitch and survive.What she didn't know, but what Haymitch knew very well, was that the ax would bounce back.The ax bounced back at last and landed squarely on her forehead.The cannon fires, her body is dragged away, and the trumpets of victory sound as Haymitch wins. Peeta turns off the VCR and we sit there in silence, not saying a word. Finally, Peeta said, "The cliff is the same as the one we saw on the roof of the training center, the glass wall that keeps people from jumping and bounces them back. Haymitch discovered the secret and turned it into a a weapon." "It became a weapon not only against the other tributes, but also against the Capitol. You know, they didn't expect this to happen, it wasn't part of the Hunger Games, they never intended to use the cliff as a A weapon. Haymitch cracked the secret and made them look stupid. I dare say they didn't have less headaches for it, which is why we didn't see this footage in public screenings before. It's the same as We're just as bad eating berries!" I said. I couldn't help laughing, the first real laugh in months.Peeta just shakes his head resignedly, like I'm crazy; yeah, maybe I'm a little bit crazy. "More or less, but not quite," Haymitch said, standing behind us.I turned around quickly, afraid he'd be mad at us for watching a video of him, but he just chuckled and took another swig from the wine bottle.Don't expect him to be sober.I should have been a little uneasy to see him drinking again, but now I had another thought. In the past few weeks, I have been trying my best to familiarize myself with my competitors, and I have not paid much attention to my team.And at this point, a new hope ignited in me, because I finally understood what Haymitch was like.I also started to realize who I am.Sure, then, the two men who caused the Capitol big trouble could figure out a way to keep Peeta alive.