unforgivable {Iain oneshot}

i a i n .

His name haunted him. Every second of every single day all he heard was the escort standing on the stage calling out his name, and from the clouds in the nightmares, Iain moved forward. One foot after another until he was standing on the stage for all of district eleven to see. He was going into the seventy-second hunger games. Iain was going to die -

"I volunteer!"

The words blasted through the sky, and Iain looked around, brown eyes scanning over the crowd trying to pinpoint the sound of the voice. Deep inside the crippled kid begged for Tobias not to save him, he didn't want his brother to die - Iain didn't want anyone to die, yet the odds weren't exactly in his favor. His heart clawed at his ribs looking for a place to escape, but none was there. Yet he kept looking around, the voice kept repeating the words over and over until the boy made his way through the crowd and into the open. But it wasn't any ordinary boy, no it was his cousin, Ikaia. Twin brother to Kirito.

His heart plummeted into his chest. While he was grateful for a savior, nobody else in his family needed to die. Nobody should suffer the fate Finter called him to, yet every year Iain stood in place watching as the unlucky made their way towards the stage. One hobbled step after another, Ikaia duck walked towards the stage, and Iain just stood there, frozen. His eyes locked onto Ikaia's, and a blood curdling scream erupt past his lips filling the air around him.

"Ikaia!"

Someone pulled him off the stage, and Iain kept looking around wondering why his cousin wanted to save him. Yeah he was a crippled fourteen year old, and yeah he was sentenced to die the death Kirito escaped, but he didn't want this to happen. A waterfall of tears swam down the side of his face as the person carried him away. Iain kicked and screamed and beg for this nightmare to end, but it wasn't a nightmare. It was reality, and Ikaia just saved him from his certain death.

But he never said goodbye.

It was all in the past, and now it was the sixth day of the hunger games, and he had no clue what to do.

Iain found himself staring at the screen watching Ikaia journey through the games. It should've been him marching through the arena. It should've been him living inside the hell Ikaia volunteered himself for, but it wasn't. Iain was safe and sound living at home. Tobias gave him all the cherry pie in the world, but it wasn't enough. Every time Iain opened his eyes, all he could see was the same thing over and over again. Ikaia was alone, and two emerged around him, attacking him.

"Ikaia!"

Iain's voice cracked as he fell to his knees begging for mercy. District eleven had hope, and it was slowly crashing down around him. A lit knife flew towards him landing in his stomach. Iain cried out in pain as Ikaia begged for mercy. Nobody wanted to die in the games, yet this fight was only going to end one way. Two against one. Iain knew Ikaia was going to die unless a god intervened, but Iain didn't believe in gods. He stopped believing the moment his name was drawn several days ago. Yet he found himself at a loss of words, and he was on his knees praying to a god he didn't believe in. Ikaia wasn't supposed to be in the arena, it was supposed to be him. The girl attacked him, and it wasn't much, it was never much, but it was enough to give the two the advantage they needed.

Somehow Ikaia managed to gain the strength needed to fight back. He did what he could, but it wasn't enough. It's never enough. District eleven wasn't going to get another victor. The reaping was rigged, the fights were rigged, everything about this game was rigged.

Iain was supposed to die, yet Ikaia stood in his place. Every blow caught him off guard, and the fourteen year old knew the fight was coming to and end. Then it all went up in smoke, and Ikaia collapsed. He couldn't breathe, couldn't do anything as the fire burned inside his body.

"No! Ikaia! Please!"

He begged for another chance. He begged for the forgiveness he deserved. It was his fault Ikaia volunteered for the games. It was his fault Kirito wouldn't have a twin brother anymore. Iain was the only one to blame. He watched as his cousin suffered, and he watched as Ezero stuck the knife into his neck to prevent Ikaia from suffering anymore. And he fell to the ground as the cannon sound, and Iain screamed at the top of his lungs. Every ounce of hope shattered in front of him. It should've been him standing there, but it wasn't because Ikaia saved him. He gave Iain another day of life, and he wasn't going to get the chance to talk to Ikaia again. He should've said goodbye the moment he volunteered, but now he was gone. Ikaia was just another face in the sky.

Iain hoisted himself from the floor, and he looked around the house through tear-stained eyes. A gut wrenching sob bellowed through the air, and the fourteen year old took off running as fast as his crippled leg would allow him. He flew through the door to Kirito's house leaving the door wide open. Iain sprinted through the Victor's Village, the orchards, the fields, and he didn't stop until he was standing in front of the old ran down house. Once inside the house, the broken boy collapsed to the ground drowning himself in sorrow.

It was his fault Ikaia had died.

And that was a sin nobody could forgive.

credit to rave