we could do this [all night] //victors

It came as a blessing when Lethe was told that she could leave Eden with a reliable crew of matronly Avoxes for the night. She was halfway through applying make-up, a wonderful feat in itself for she did it all without a mirror, when she got the notice. There wasn't any other thought. Exhausted, in the midst of coating the bags under her eyes in concealer, Lethe packed Eden an overnight bag and dropped the squirming, sobbing child off at the designated room, only appeasing her with the promise she could keep Camalia for the night. This new institution probably came about after the Capitol grew tired of watching Victors cart their children around to social events and leave all their attention on them. Tonight was not a particularly social event, but rather a private one, hosted by Lethe and including only Victors, but however the status of a Victor meeting, the Capitol tabloid magazines always managed to find out what shenanigans ensued and perhaps the presence of children would deprive the Capitol of what entertainment they got from such magazines. As if they weren't entertained enough.

Now alone in her abode, Lethe felt chills sweeping up and down her spine. She'd never been quite so alone before without Camalia licking her neck and Eden tugging at her arm and this new atmosphere left her with a sense that she was being watched...monitored. Perhaps surrounded by the love of her life, her child, and her lifeline, the lizard that kept her sane in that awful Arena, she was safe. Without them, naked.

It was alone that those familiar claws gripped and grabbed at her. Where those voices whispered in her ear, shrill, shrieking and then gone with a flash of silver in a rain-soaked graveyard. There it was that Lethe could see all of their bones on the ground, clinging most putridly to moldering scraps of flesh, horribly bloated and enlarged so that they stood straight up and spoke to her with sightless eyes. She knew who they were and could name them one by one. Alikia. Anya. Saskia. Seah. Razor. But, they couldn't see her, so they reached and clawed away at her cheeks, moaning and crying until she was sure the sound was coming from her own cracked mouth and blood ran down her cheeks, intensified by her wildly racing heart, until she could reach her hands up and feel it on her hands, warm and wet.

And then, as abruptly as that, it ended and Lethe stood from her floor on trembling legs. She pressed a sweaty hand to her red face, tracing the inflamed lines over her cheeks. She had only broken the skin in one place, so, calm now, she ventured into the bathroom and cleaned herself up by touch, using the healing lotion she'd been prescribed. Then, she covered her face with a thicker coat of cover up and went back to her front room where she’d set up a long table and adorned it with food under silver dishes. She’d do all the serving. No Avoxes were to be present. Only Victors. Three bottles of wine stood tall directly in the middle, a delicacy that Lethe knew she’d allow herself tonight…for tonight was a night she was willing to drown in. On her chair, she left a game that she’d found in her one of her younger sibling’s rooms. It was a peculiar game called Twister, but the box advertised that it was for parties! So, why not?

At that exact moment, there was a knock on her door and hastily patting her cheek down to make sure the make-up was secure, Lethe strode forward and opened her door with a smile at the first guests. “Come in! I have dinner and drinks and games! It’s going to be a fun night!”