Beauty From The Ashes….A Glato fanfic centering on what would have happened if Katniss died but Glimmer takes the place of the Mockingjay years later and the Rebellion still comes to pass. Follow how her redemption story starts in the Arena with Cato and continues on through their life in District Two as she makes friendships with other Mentors that slowly challenge both her illicit relationship with Seneca Crane and her perspective on what the Capitol really is about after all.

DISCLAIMER: I do not own the Hunger Games nor its characters, Suzanne Collins does. If I did, Levin Ramblin and Alexander Ludwig would be in the next two movies…

Please review, it helps me as an author to understand what people enjoy and how I can improve. This is my first fanfic.

**note**: Revised chapter. Each one will be updated to add a few tidbits and flow more smoothly into the ones that follow.

Beauty From the Ashes

Chapter One-A Fire Begins

"We have some things to discuss, don't we Glimmer?"

"Mmm hmm" I numbly agreed. I watched Marvel raise an eyebrow but Cato's look brooked no disagreement. I anticipated the worst. Damn, why did I hesitate? I was hoping the darkness would have hidden the fear in my expression but judging by Marvels', it hadn't.

"You two ok?" he inquired, turning with curiosity to face us. I noticed his knuckles were white around the spear in his hand and judging by that, it wouldn't take much to set the boy off on edge.

"Everything's fine" Cato replied flatly. I nodded my agreement.

There were many things I would do to win, but be willing to get my district partner killed over my own stupidity wasn't one of them. If by some chance I could talk my way out of whatever was going to happen, we had to maintain the status quo and pretend everything was just fine. Going according to plan and smashingly well. Keeping calm and carrying on. Else, I'd be gambling on relying on Clove's good graces in the absence of Cato's leadership and I knew that wouldn't get Marvel very far. I shook my head at Marvel almost imperceptibly…enough though to get the point across.

Please just go along my eyes pleaded. Though not convinced entirely, he relaxed his grip on the spear shrugging as he turned away to continue guarding the camp. With that Cato and I continued on to the east, our only interruption now being the occasional snapping of twigs under us and the scurrying of nameless nocturnal critters around them.

Once we were outside the circle of firelight, Cato all but drug me towards the ridge of the hills that lay perhaps a half-mile from our campsite. I didn't fight, knowing it would be useless to do so. I was still armed with the very same knife that got me into this predicament, but matched up against a boy with a sword who had eight inches in height and seventy pounds of straight muscle on me it would seem the odds were definitely not in my favor.

We came around a large oak tree behind which I could faintly make out the mouth of a small cave. The Capitol created moonlight was just enough to find the entrance but not enough to make out anything else. Whatever happens, it won't be on camera my mind thought and somehow that thought gave me pause. I thought of my mother and my little sister Dazzle back home, would they even miss me once my cannon fired? Would I just be another embarrassment to my district? I could imagine Cashmere drumming her nails in irritation at yet another wasted year mentoring another kid all shine and no substance. Maybe next year she'd get one who wasn't coming home without a box around them.

No doubt there would be sponsors disappointed, my odds being officially 7-1. Maybe I wasn't the best bet (Cato was) but hell, I wasn't exactly the dark horse of the group either. No, that honor probably went to their pair from District Seven who I managed to eliminate within three minutes of each other in the first moments of the Bloodbath. "Lucky Sevens" Marvel said and we laughed. But to give the devil her due, Clove had gotten the first kill with the District Nine boy.

Perhaps I was kidding myself and all of Panem would cheer to see my last moments of bleeding out, interspersed between Caesar Flickerman's glitzy advertisements for Smile White and cheerful jingles for the Capitol's newest shade of SkyLiner. But then again, in more intimate moments Seneca had told me there were specific "blind spots" in the arena, places that even the mentors and Gamemakers couldn't see or even hear everything going on, ones that few tributes would be likely to stumble upon. Of course I knew where these were and then I realized with some trepidation somehow I wasn't the only one with this knowledge, at least of one of these locations.

I had just enough time to wonder how Cato had figured this out when my chain of thought was immediately broken by the feeling of my body being lifted suddenly off the ground. The next thing I knew the wind was leaving my lungs and my knife escaped my grip just as my back slammed into an unyielding stone surface. Still struggling to get my breath, I realized my feet were dangling several inches off the ground and I was losing oxygen fast. Looking up, my eyes met Cato's and even in the dim moonlight I could see a feral anger that left me terrified.

"So just tell me one thing, District One…"

As if his nonchalant tone of voice wasn't enough to frighten me, the cold steel edge of a deadly sharp hunting knife started to trace across my abdomen. The same one I'd used to kill the District Eight girl just yesterday. I didn't even remember her name now anymore than Cato likely would mine. The irony of the situation was not lost on me.

His voice practically flooded my being, commanding my attention.

"What the HELL were you thinking?"

"That you and Marvel would just run off into the sunset without me?"

"That your silly laugh and pretty face would somehow save you from the others?"

He thinks I'm pretty I smiled inwardly, but then I stopped myself. Gods, how could I be so shallow at a moment like this? I'm about to die and I'm thrilled to get a compliment? What the fuck? Where the hell had all my years of training gone?

"Maybe I'm not making myself clear…."

I saw Cato's free hand effortlessly slide the knife back somewhere on his person, realizing his intentions a second too late as I braced for it. The pain came hot and sharp across my cheek anyway as stars danced across my already hazy vision and a faintly metallic taste registered against my tongue.

"I asked you a damn question Glimmer and you'd better answer me! " he screamed at me, my body shaking limply in his grasp, still pinned against the stone.

I remembered what Seneca had said and done and steeled myself for the worst.

Nothing worse can happen to me in the Arena than I've already endured.

I'm very prepared my mind lied but it was then and there I realized I truly did not want to die. And with that realization, the last of my Career training fled me, leaving only a scared sixteen-year-old girl who wanted to go home.

"I fucked up, ok? I screwed up. I thought I could do it and I couldn't. I'm sorry, ok? Just get it over with and make it quick. Do whatever you have to, I can't take it back now."

Tears squeezed out from my eyes before I could even feel embarrassed by them as I choked out my reply. Yet I could see a moment of confusion flash across Cato's face.

"Marvel put you up to this?"

The truth was, yes, a little. We'd had a few discussions about strategy and maybe even a couple of wild ideas that we could consider. But I still had the presence of mind to give a shit about my partner; even if I wasn't 100% sure he'd do the same for me.

So I did what came naturally.

I lied.

"No, no, gods no! He'd be furious with me right now if he knew! To come all this way and screw it up for him? I'd never do that!"

Well that part was true. I hadn't planned on this particular outcome….

I felt Cato's hold loosen ever so slightly on my neck as I slid down against the cave wall a few inches. I still couldn't feel the ground beneath me but I noticed now his eyes were level with mine and he no longer glared up at me with ferocity. No, his expression had been replaced with an almost clinical gaze, one that said clearly he could skin me from hair to toenail without so much as an ounce of emotion about it. I held my breath, waiting for his decision. Life? Or death? I couldn't so much as fathom his thoughts.

"What I don't get is why. Why did you hesitate Glimmer? You're a trained killer. I saw flip out when you yelled at that kid from Six. And kill three other tributes after him without a second thought."

I truthfully had no answer. Or at least an answer I wasn't ashamed of. I felt a heat rising in my temples and flushing my cheeks that I could only pray wasn't visible. I stared back into the endless ocean that was Cato's eyes without speaking, hoping for some sort of absolution. But I knew one wasn't forthcoming. All I had at this point was the truth, the last refuge of the truly helpless, and now I was one of that number. For one of the few times I could remember in my soon to be too short life, I decided to tell the truth.

"I couldn't do it. Not to you. I don't know why …." my voice trailed off. I stared down at the ground below me; to the shiny knife I'd dropped what seemed an eternity ago. It shone back in the light tauntingly, inches and yet miles away from being any help to me. All I could do now was wait.

"Lucky for you, that was the right answer"

And before I knew it, Cato's mouth was on mine and his hands were twisting in my hair. His reaction took me completely by surprise but my own did as well, for rising under my skin was a sudden desire for this deadly beast that nothing on Panem could quell.

I forgot in an instant my fear, probably the stupidest thing I'd ever done.

We hit the ground together hard, the impact dazing me as the world spun around crazily. Maybe he was going to kill me after all. Perhaps I should have kept my wits about me before succumbing to his charms. I noticed my knife was only a few feet away-the same exact moment Cato did.

My eyes must have betrayed me! Damn I hope I don't pay for that.

"Tsk tsk, you won't be needing that" he said, brushing it aside with one wide swat of his hand, pinning me from the waist down with his greater weight. I looked up at him knowing exactly what he seemed to have in mind. I closed my eyes, trying to calm myself. Fighting would prove deadly, I knew that. I'd flirted with him like crazy the entire time during training, what exactly did I think would happen anyway?

You could only dangle meat in front of a starving animal but for so long…

"Look at me"

There was something commanding in Cato's voice I could not ignore and I opened my eyes in surprise, my gaze met by his. He looked down at me trapped helplessly beneath him suddenly with a conflicted expression I couldn't fathom.

"Is this what you want?" he said, his blue eyes searching mine intently.

I have a choice? My mind wondered incredulously

"What….what do you mean?" I stuttered in reply.

"I mean, did you ever intend to sleep with me or is this all just an act?" he replied matter-of-factly. Calm, collected Cato was a lot more frightening than angry killer Cato, though I couldn't rationally understand why. I considered my words carefully, especially in light of the fact he could have snapped my neck without any trouble at this point.

Boy I'd bet the viewers of Panem wish they could see thisIthought wryly

"It's not an act. I just didn't exactly picture us ending up this way"

"What did you picture Glimmer?" he asked, cocking his head to the side.

"Something other than begging for my life in a dirty cave comes to mind"

I regretted my arrogant, foolish words as soon as they left my mouth but oddly enough, Cato didn't get angry. He seemed if anything embarrassed for a moment. Looking around, he seemed convinced finally that no one would discover us and that we were, indeed, alone. He shifted his weight back off of me, and what he did next took me most by surprise. Extending a hand to me, he pulled me back up to my feet, brushing the hair out of my eyes.

"Let's start over" he simply said, giving me a dazzling smile. I cursed myself but inwardly, my heart swooned. There was just something about this boy I had to have.

It would likely be the death of me too. Just not tonight.

"Ok" I said tentatively, not sure really what to do next. This was unexpected.

"Hi….I'm Cato, from District Two. And you are?" he said, feigning ignorance.

"I am Glimmer, this year's tribute from District One and future Victor"

He laughed, but it wasn't a cruel laughter this time. More of an amused one.

"Oooooh….confidence! I like that in a woman"

"You know what else I like in you?" he continued, a devilish grin on his face.

"I have no idea" I replied, not really sure where this conversation was going. It was definitely heading in a better direction than it had been fifteen short minutes ago, that much I knew. I could also tell as he pressed up against me that killing me was now likely the farthest thing from his head, at least the one he was thinking with.

"Me" he said, winking, putting his hands on my waist, and pulling me closer.

It was my turn to laugh but it came out as more of a giggle. This guy had the lamest come-on lines I'd ever heard—worse than Marvel's even-but somehow, they seemed endearing still. For the briefest of moments, I forgot we were fighting for our lives in an Arena where no doubt one of us wasn't coming out. No, all there was at that point in time was two infatuated, horny teenagers. Were things different, we'd be going out for popcorn and a movie somewhere.

And that was the world I decided I would live in, at least for a little while.

"Well then, let's do something about that" I replied smiling, putting my hands on his shoulders, leaning in to share a kiss that I'd only been able to idly dream and wonder about up until then.

Carpe diem. Hell, I was likely going to die anyway.

Might as well be with no regrets.

\