breathe [Stare]

Annie had never been used to coming around places that she wasn’t familiar with. As much as she didn’t want to admit it, One was one of those places. The scenery reminded her too much of the life that she hated. The regality of one had always put her in the place that reminded her of her father, and if you didn’t know Annie, she would tell you the first thing she would tell others.

Fuck her father.

She was never a fan of him, and maybe that was because he tried so hard to make her into exactly what she became. A victor. He had this perverted idea of delirium that involved her taking that crown effortlessly. He had no clue, no cared, what she would be subjected to. She would have to murder others to claim the fame that he had been seeking. It almost sounded too perfect to him at this point. He would go on and bask in any sort of clout he could get his hands on, and Annie would try her hardest to keep him from even stepping foot in her house. Only family was allowed there.

And he was the farthest from that.

---

She made her way through the city square, a lively and lavish place that most people of four would scratch their heads at. It was nothing new to Annie after all. She had seen everything the world of Panem had to offer after all. The marble sidewalks and pillars that reached towards the skies were different from the worn out wood and salty smell that wafted from four. Annie felt like this place was not home to her, and that was the point.

It wasn’t.

She was only here because she was asked to come. Or at least, she thought she was. There was a premise that she was needed here after all. Maybe it was Bette who called? That’s when she realized that wasn’t the case. It was a letter that wasn’t supposed to be sent out her way, which meant that she had wasted her time making her schedule full of day drinking just come out this way. Maybe she could figure something else to do. It sure would be nice to be sober for longer than a day, that was for sure.

Annie moved into the Justice building before passing the people that wanted to get her attention. She did not care for the peanut gallery. That was harsh. She knew that, but she might as well take the time to really explore what this district had to offer. The person who had been escorting her around made it very clear that she could not venture off by herself, but Annie didn’t listen to them. She was very stern in her words, especially when she told that escort to get lost for an hour just so she could be alone. She promised she would only be up on the roof of the Justice Building and nowhere else.

She was good at keeping her word.

She found her way up there and kept a mental note that the escort had been following her. She furrowed her brows at the door before watching them walk through the door with a tray of snacks and some water. Annie couldn’t help but realize that they were just trying to be kind to her. She didn’t know why. Maybe it was because Ridley Le Roux had killed her mentee last year. Or maybe they were trying to keep her happy enough to keep coming back. After all, a victor showing their faces in their district always looked good for publicity? Right?

Needless to say, Annie did always have business here when she came, and most of the time, it was to see Bette. However, maybe she would get lucky this time and finally get to meet the mysterious Ridley. She didn’t count on it, as she had probably been busy with anything else that could have been important in her life. They were separate entities after all. None of the victors had been close to each other, save Saffron and Mace. It was a fickle thought, but one that Annie had held onto.

She couldn’t lie though, the thought of Shelby did cross her mind, but she simply placed it in a box in her mind and locked it up for now. She just needed to be.

She grabbed the pitcher of water and poured herself a glass before looking out on the terrace around the district. She wondered if this was where she needed to be right now.

Probably not, but there she was.

Waiting.