Green things (Chester/ems)

Chester pushed the tree forward, and he stood in awe as it ripped through the leaves of the other tree before landing with a deafening thud. The corners of his lips twisted into a wicked grin as he watched a group of guys load the tree and drag it away. His entire life was devoted to cutting down trees for a living, yet he yearned for more. After the terrible death of his parents he bounced around from house to house until he finally made a living in the woods stealing books from the stores learning more about plants, and more about the ones he could use to harm people he hated. But Chester never confronted people, he did it behind their back by slipping a poisonous berry inside a drink, and then he watched and waited.

His hands wrapped around the wooden grip of his axe before walking away from work to take a short break to devour his lunch sitting somewhere in the woods. A plate of healthy plants and berries lingered behind every corner. Weeds grew tall from the untouched section of the forest, and he longed for his chance to tear down the trees, yet he had the respect to keep them alive for the animals lingering inside. But something caught his eye. A person.

A soft sigh escaped his lips as he lowered his axe to the ground allowing it to rest against a giant tree, and he waltzed forward pushing apart the weeds trying not to run into any briars and thorns. Removing them was twice as painful as the gentle prick of a briar sticking out of a rosebush. But he stopped just shy of the person walking before him making sure to stay out of view before speaking softly.

"I hope you aren't planning on eating those unless you want to die."

A slight chuckle bubbled through his throat and past his lips as he stared at the kid in front of him. Chester couldn't help the joy ringing inside as the guy franticly searched his basket wondering what was inside. "Naaa, I...um" It was amazing what a little bit of scare could do to a person. His eyes turned towards the trees and bushes while taking in all the berries on the bushes, and plants growing around them.

They were good for making dyes, as the guy mentioned. But the wrong ones could cause horrible, blistering rashes if picked from the wrong tree.

Chester paused when asked to show the ones that he wouldn't go around eating, or using, and one of the first things he saw was the little white and pink clusters of berries growing from a bush near where he was standing. And he saw little tiny red berries, along with a blueberry bush, and a raspberry bush.

"You see those white and pink ones? I wouldn't eat those." He paused before turning to the blueberries and picking one from the bush to examine it. "But these, they're quite delicious." Chester popped one into his mouth allowing the juices to flow over his tongue as he bit into the blueberry. He turned to another direction with a patch of poison ivy growing around. "And I wouldn't touch that unless you want a painful, blistering rash."

Birds chirped in the sky as he watched wondering what his next move was, yet the question completely caught him off guard. ".. Who are you again?"

"I didn't say, but I'm Chester." He grinned. "And who are you?"

A hand extended forward snagging a few blueberries before popping them into his mouth. It was appetizing, and an amazing feeling knowing that the woods held everything he ever needed. It was his home, and Chester knew more than he would ever let on. Days went by experimenting with the different plants growing until he found what he could use. Weapons weren't nearly as destructive as poisonous berries, or poison ivy. Plants were at his disposal because every single year in the spring and summer, the vegetation returned. He didn't know what he would do if it all burned down.

"I do know what poison ivy is. Thanks, though."

It may not have meant anything, but Chester took a mental note of the kid in front of him realizing that maybe one day they'd meet again, and it wouldn't be the same kind of encounter as this one. He smirked as he popped another berry into his mouth as the kid introduced himself as Cherry Strange -

What a weird name.

But then again it makes sense coming from district seven. He offered a slight nod while watching Cherry wipe his stained hand on his shirt before extending it in a warm greeting. Most of the time, Chester would turn away and leave the poor guy hanging, but something was different. He wasn't like the others he met. Wiping every single emotion away, he extended his own hand for a shake. "Well, Cherry, it's nice to meet you." His eyes locked on Cherry's eyes, and he wondered what went on inside his mind before lowering his hand.

"You... work out here? I'm on a gathering expedition."

For a moment he thought about lying. He thought about making up a story filled with imagination, but in the end he decided against it.

"Yes. I'm a lumberjack." He stated calmly through gritted teeth. "Been doing this for a long time. Gotta make ends meet somehow." He turned hoping that nobody found his axe lying in the distance next to the tree. "The woods is plentiful. It has food for anyone who needs it, and it can also offer the chance to enhance one's knowledge of good and evil."

His entire life was devoted to learning. Every second of every single day when he wasn't trapped at the lumberjack yard, Chester strutted through the forest taking in every single detail. Scars covered his hands from the many times he lifted poison ivy from the ground. Some days his hands were stained purple from the different berry juices. But today his hands were clean.

It was almost obvious Cherry wasn't sure what Chester was talking about, yet his mind roamed through trying to find an easier way to explain. He listened closely as the words echoed through his ears. Chester didn't have a mother to tell him to stop spending time in the woods, and his father wouldn't dare.

Lessons were learned from experimenting, and perhaps this test would one day go to far before death swept him away.

"I am not sure about good and evil, though. I mean, sure, poison ivy sucks big time, but that doesn't make it evil."

Chester smirked as he turned away from Cherry for only a moment figuring out a proper explanation, yet none was there. Nothing would ever describe dropping a few shredded poison ivy plants into someone's smoothie at the shop, nor would it show the pain people felt when a few drops of poisonous berry juice swam down their throat with a cup of juice.

"You have to know how to use them." Chester cleared his throat before turning back around. "They can turn someone's entire world upside down. All it takes is a tiny bit. Never enough to kill them, but enough to make them suffer."

It was amusing watching the guy in front of him. A cocky grin twist across his face, and Chester turned around taking in all his surroundings. Apparently it was more than a sick joke. While he had never intentionally killed anyone during the moment of revenge, sometimes the results were tragic. The woods made him feel alive. The world revolved around his home, yet he only stepped foot in the district square long enough to turn his planned masterpiece into art.

He chuckled softly.

During his life, all he ever wanted was the chance to find a home where people loved and cared for him, yet his parents pushed him away. Chester wasn't one of their children. He was a mistake trapped inside the body of a man they called son. But son had no meaning anymore. Even during the darkest nights when snow covered the ground, Chester was outside yearning for comfort, and he finally found it.

The words buzzed through his ears, and the idea of making someone pay bounced through his tiny skull. Although this wasn't his cup of tea. Sure watching someone experience explosive diarrhea was nice, but it wasn't what he was looking for.

"That's very true. Living here they should know the difference. And it's always fun watching someone jump from their seat and sprint towards the latrine." He paused as the smile went away. "The look on their face is priceless. And to me it makes it all perfect."

Chester didn't care about what other people thought of him. Words meant nothing. Facial expressions only opened the door into the blank reality each individual was living in. He had the entire world to explore. The woods was never ending, and the possibilities grew larger with each passing breath. Somewhere Chester knew more plants existed, and he wanted to find them. He yearned to learn more about the plant life growing inside the woods, yet he didn't dare cross the fence. It was against the law, and while Chester never cared for the laws, the idea of touching a fence and getting electrocuted wasn't on his bucket list.

It was almost obvious Cherry was an amateur, yet Chester wasn't about to put him down. He wasn't about to ruin any ideas this kid may have brewing in his mind. He wanted to learn more, and Chester wasn't the greatest teacher living inside district seven, but maybe if he could corrupt the mind of an innocent teen, he stood a chance in bringing down the world around him.

The smile returned as he realized Cherry wanted to learn, and it took everything inside him to stop from cackling like an idiot. His face lit up with excitement, and his cheeks felt warm, but now wasn't the time to celebrate. "It takes a delicate hand to hold onto the prizes lingering in the woods. All you have to do is respect the plants, and they'll respect you. Make the mistake one time, and the next time you'll know what the plants are capable of." He paused for a moment. "But don't ever allow them to fool you twice."

Teaching people took a lot of work, and Chester preferred working alone, but the idea of having a companion interested him. He turned his head taking in his surroundings. Every bush to every tiny ant caught his eye for only a moment. Birds chirped as they flew through the sky. It made him grateful he grew up in district seven because he couldn't imagine his life in another district. But he knew nothing of them, and the only way to find out was to enter the games and interrogate those sentenced to die. Many plants in the arena had toxic capabilities, and he wanted to explore them. He wanted to learn more about how they worked, and the only way to find out the answers he needed was through many experiments; however, those experiments had the chance of ending bad.

People died from the use of poisonous plants, and Chester wasn't in the mood to have peacekeepers chasing after him. He cocked his head to the side and ran his fragile fingers through his curly blonde hair pondering the proper answer. It seemed Cherry was interested in learning. He hadn't pushed him away like many had done before because his looks were ragged, and it appeared he hadn't bathed in days. It wasn't a like. In fact it was the truth because he hadn't bathed in a while because his home was in the middle of the woods.

A soft sigh fell from his lips as he popped a blueberry into his mouth allowing his tongue to slide through it. The juice filled his mouth, and he wanted more, but he couldn't leave this man's question hanging in the middle of the air. "I've never taught anyone before." He shrugged before running his hand through his tangled hair once more. "Not many are interested in learning." It was the truth. A harsh reality. Many were afraid to touch the plants they've never seen before, but Chester wasn't afraid. He knew their capabilities, and he wanted to learn more. Perhaps this was the time to do so.

"But it doesn't hurt to start now."