Disclaimer: I do not own The Hunger Games.

Warning: This oneshot is the reason this fic has been rated T (apart from the occasional swearing in other chapters). Therefore it may be unsuitable for younger readers.

Review reply to malola165: Thanks for the review. I'm glad you liked it, despite its inadequacies :)

A/N: Well, last one. Whew. Thank you all for your kind reviews and for favouriting it or putting it on alert. They made my day and in some cases, cheered me up from depressions (especially after bad incidents invloving cars). I hope you all had as much fun reading it as i did writing it. There will be a sequel called Game Over so if you're interested, feel free to check it out. Thank you all, again.

24) Katniss Everdeen – District Twelve (Girl)

I keep my eyes on the floor as the fist thuds into my face again. He'll stop soon, I think. He's tired: I can feel his blows getting weaker.

I'm wrong. He grabs my hair – I know better than to make a sound – and pulls me towards the bed. For the fourth time this week.

More pain.

After he's done, he rolls off me and falls asleep. Quietly, I leave the bed and go to take a shower. I want to get rid of him. Anything to do with him. His voice, his fists, his alcohol, his possessiveness…

And me. I want to get rid of me. My weakness, my cowardice…

God, I hate myself.

I can't even stand up for myself. Every time he touches me, I hope that he will leave me. Every day, when he hurts me for any reason, I pray that he will be arrested. Every night that he … rapes … me, I dream of him dying. I even pray that he'll go too far and kill me instead. But I can't do any of that myself. I can't convince him to leave. I can't call the Peacekeepers. I can't kill him. I don't have the courage to kill myself.

Tears drip down my face as I pull a new nightdress on. His snores grind through the house.

I can't even bring myself to run away. He'll find me again.

He's deeply asleep now. If I go back to the bed, he won't notice me; he won't decide to have any more 'fun'. But just the thought of lying next to him makes me sweat. Instead, I head downstairs and switch on the television. Anything to block out my life.

The screen is showing a re-cap of the second day of the Hunger Games. On the screen is Katniss Everdeen. She's struggling from thirst but she keeps on moving.

I envy her – she is everything that I am not. She's brave. She's fierce. She's independent. She fights no matter what.

I wish I was her. I wish I had even one-tenth of her personality and courage.

Watching her, I wonder what she would do if she were like me. She would fight back, I know. She would never agree to anything he told her to do.

Could I be like her? How? How could I prove to myself that I'm like her? Maybe I could … just once …

No. He'd find out.

But what if I could help her?

No. He'd hurt me.

Just one little thing…

No. He'd kill me.

But it would mean I'd be free, if only for one second … or even all eternity.

Before he killed me, he would torture me. I'm not strong enough.

What should I do? What would Katniss do?

She would do it anyway. She would fight back.

Then I'll do it. Just one act of defiance. One moment of freedom. One moment to pretend I'm her. The consequences will be horrible, but for just one night, I will have been brave. I will have been alive.

I creep over to the phone.

"Hello. I … I'd like … no."

"Hello … could I … sorry."

"Hello. I … I'd like to… to … to sponsor Katniss Everdeen. Please."

Fin