#younger sejanus plinth | Explore Tumblr posts and blogs

cosmicschmidt · 2 years ago

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UNTIL I FOUND YOU

PART 2, PART 3

Coriolanus Snow x fem!Reader

Synopsis: When the 18 year old Coriolanus Snow recieves the news that he has to mentor a tribute in order to claim the Plinth Prize, he expected everything but not a shy girl from district 12 to claim his heart.

Word count: 2,4K

Warnings: Lucy Gray does not exsist in this (I´m sorry), some things might not fully add up to the movie plot ´cause I only saw it once and that was two days ago, use of Y/N, it´s implied that the reader is shorter than Coryo, small swearing, simple inhumane Hunger Games topics

Reblogs and requests are always welcomed <3 (just like pointing out grammatical mistakes :))

Coriolanus Snow did not mean for this to happen.

He did not intend to have this weird tingly feeling in his chest every time he caught a glimpse of her.

He did not mean to fall for his tribute from District 12.

As he patiently sat in his seat with his heart hammering in his chest due to not knowing if he´d receive the scholarship, adrenaline and excitement ran through his veins.

Yet, that was taken from him the moment Sejanus Plinth whispered to him that that certain day he looked forward to would not turn out as he hoped.

The Plinth Prize was won by the best mentor.

Each of them has to mentor a tribute and create the best version of them, create strategies and work on their behavior in the arena.

As all the tributes are presented, their names called alongside their mentors, Coriolanus´ hands start to sweat the longer he is not told who he has to work with.

The faces of his fellow students show different emotions, some cheer in happiness at their tributes state, others are laced with worry if their tribute even manages to walk straight.

"And last but not least, the girl from District 12, Coriolanus Snow."

His eyes shoot back to the small screen, his gaze falls to the name written underneath the short clip, Y/N L/N.

"I volunteer as tribute."

The screen shows a screaming girl, around the age of 11 as she trashes in the hold of someone else´s arms, desperately trying to escape their grasp to reach the other girl.

The other girl's face is slightly blurred due to the wide angle of the camera that is following her figure, but as the picture clears up, Coriolanus can´t help but suck in a breath.

A weird feeling boils in his chest that causes his heartbeat to pick up behind his ribcage, just as he thought it couldn´t get worse a few butterflies form in his stomach causing his white tunic to suddenly feel tighter. His hands go to the collar pulling a little on the fabric to calm his heartbeat.

The tribute from 12, stepped in for the younger girl and took her fate as her own. The girl, now known as Y/N doesn´t look back at the screaming girl, she takes small steps to the stage and steps on it the moment she reaches it.

Although her hands tremble beside her body, her eyes are stern and show no emotion, successfully keeping herself from spilling the dread that formed in her chest the moment her little sister's name was called.

"What a twist! Our first ever volunteer of 12, what an honor." the 12´s mayor speaks, yet no reaction falls from the crowd at his attempt to lighten the mood.

"I suppose that was your sister? Sweet little thing just turned 12, but luckily she has you as her big sister." Mayor Lipp tries to create small talk, but Y/N doesn´t seem to take interest in that, her eyes boring into the camera that is fixated on her face.

Everyone that surrounds Coriolanus watches intensely and waits for her next words.

Y/N´s jaw clenches a little as her gaze wanders over her district's citizens, some laugh at her situation, while others, alongside her family have tears in their eyes and hold a hand in front of their mouths to contain a sob from spilling past their lips.

Instead of words leaving her mouth, she does a mocking and overly dramatic bend forward with her arms stretched out on each side of her body.

Just as two Peacekeepers grab a hold of her arms and pull her off the stage she yells out,

"YOU CAN ALL SUCK I-" but her words muffle due to her being pulled away.

Meanwhile, everyone around Coriolanus starts to whisper.

Some voice behind him, "Who does she think she is?"

"Imagine having to work with that, guess who won´t win the Plinth Prize.." followed by laughing.

And more to his left, "The audacity, I´m telling you she´s the first to bleed out." followed by more remarks and chuckles.

Though Coriolanus can’t feel bothered by their remarks, as he watches her being dragged away from the stage with a stern look on her face.

The blonde watches with bewilderment yet with respect for her volunteering for someone else, a small smirk forming on his face as the side of his mouth pull up a little.

* ˚ ✦

Coriolanus´ gaze is fixated on the white rose in his palms, his eyes trail over each and every flaw he can spot.

Is it pretty enough?

Or is this gesture not normal in the relationship between a mentor and their tribute?

He wonders how you might react to this act of politeness, yet before he can keep up with his thoughts he´s pulled out of it when he hears the train near the train station.

There it is, it glides against the train racks before it comes to a harsh stop with a small screech, the blonde´s eyes trail over the different train carts, wondering where the certain girl from 12 is being kept.

At least a dozen armed Peacekeepers emerge from around the station, and the first cart´s handle is grabbed forcefully and shoved open, a small girl hesitantly jumps down to the ground, before she erupts into a few coughs as if she has to catch her breath from taking a run.

She´s followed by a tall boy who wears a expression he can´t read, although his brows are furrowed and a small line forms between them. The tall male´s eyes immediately find Coriolanus due to his bloody red outfit.

The male doesn´t seem to be the only one, almost everyone that already emerged from their part of the train has their eyes on him.

He fidgets with the rose again, a shiver running down his spine and all the way to his feet and then his toes.

As some tributes are escorted to the transporter outside, Coriolanus finally spots the male tribute from District 12, he remembers his name, Jessup. With a sigh of relief, he takes a few steps to him, and finally, his eyes spot the girl he so desperately tried to find the entire time.

Jessup´s hands are securely wrapped around her waist as he picks her up and helps her out of the train so she can steady herself. She smiles up at Jessup whispers a small ´thanks´ and pats him on his upper arm before she starts to take in all her surroundings.

Although their conversation is muffled, "Are you sure your neck is fine? The bite looks painful..."

Coriolanus´ breathing stops for a second, just now he notices that no camera ever will be able to take in all her beauty, his lips part a little and he can feel his mouth running dry.

Now that Y/N dusted her clothes off and had taken a look around the train station, her eyes move to her right and are met with piercing blue orbs. Although she acknowledged him, he couldn´t help but keep staring at her, the white rose in his left hand long forgotten as it rested next to his body. Confusion dawned on her face as she looked over to Jessup who offered the same expression.

The two of them share a look with a shrug before she turns her back to Coriolanus and starts to take a few steps away from him.

The blonde seems to snap out of it and with a small shake of his head and with two steps he keeps up with her smaller ones.

"Uhm- Welcome to the Capitol." he offers her a smile and holds the rose up for her to see.

Her mouth set in a hard line while her cheeks glowed a tad bit redder than before, "You don´t look like you should be here…?" she asked unsure, her eyes still trained up at his face before they fell on the flower in his hand - which slightly started to tremble -

"Uhm, I shouldn´t, my name is Coriolanus Snow, and I´m your mentor," he adds, the smile still coating his lips as he offers her the rose again.

"Mentor?" she laughs out in disbelief after she finally takes the flower out of his trembling hand and looks at it. Jessup is standing behind her, and his face still shows the same confusion it did earlier.

"Yeah, it´s my job to help you survive the arena," Coriolanus replies, the moment she took the rose out of his grasp his hand went limp and fell back to his side.

"And how exactly-" Y/N doesn´t get the opportunity to reply to his words before someone roughly pulls on her arm and drags her forcefully to the exit of the train station.

Peacekeepers decided to cut their conversation short, they pulled her with them like she weighed nothing, "I can walk by myself perfectly fine." she said loudly before she slapped the hand that was wrapped around her biceps off.

"Wait! I´m her Mentor!" Coriolanus speaks up, yet the distance between mentor and tribute is growing with each second, and the blonde picks up his steps in order to keep up with them.

A few shouts and orders are ringing through the air, the atmosphere filled with dread and an uncomfortable tension. Outside awaits a transporter for the tributes, and like pigs they are thrown and shoved into it, ready to be taken to the slaughterhouse.

The district 12 girl's eyes are trailing behind her trying to catch a glimpse of the red that coats her so-called ´mentor´, she can´t seem to see him but his shouts still reach her ringing ears.

A small hand wraps around her right hand startling the 17-year-old girl, but she quickly relaxes when she sees the small girl from District 8, Wovey. She seems scared by the loud noises, and Y/N offers her a small smile and squeeze of the hand in order to calm her down. Y/N spots a small seat at the back right corner and leads her over to it, there´s not enough space for the both of them, so she lets Wovey take it and stands beside her.

Coriolanus´ opportunity seems to flash in front of him for a split second as a tribute tries to make a run for it, the Peacekeepers running close behind, and with three steps the blonde leaps into the back of the transporter.

He runs all the way to the back of it, before he takes a few breaths trying to tame the adrenaline that shoots through his veins, his breathing calming down from the small thrill he felt.

He straightens down his clothes, and immediately spots Y/N, hand-in-hand with the little girl, her eyes holding awe, yet mostly confusion at why he just ran after her. "What are you doing here?" she whisper-yells, in order not to attract the Peacekeeper's attention.

He can´t help but draw his lower lip between his teeth, letting his actions sink in "Yeah who the hell are you?"

"Uhm-" he starts to speak up, as the other tributes´ eyes hold anger and confusion, most of them standing up and taking a few steps closer to him, cornering him a little. The red that radiates from his red clothes alerts the others.

"I suppose he´s my mentor." Y/N quickly speaks up, her voice cutting through the tension that started to build itself.

"What the hell is a mentor? And why did you get one but we didn´t?"

"Did she get one just because she was the first to volunteer?"

Y/N opens her mouth again to reply but Coriolanus beats her to it, "No, you all get a mentor, I promise the same chances are laid out for everyone." he says with a slightly raised voice so everyone hears his words.

A few unamused chuckles emerge from the ´crowd´ that formed around him, nevertheless a tall guy grabs him by the collar and slams Coriolanus back against the wall behind him pulling a gasp from his lips.

"Don´t shit talk us, what are you doing here?! Are you here to spy on us? What sick games did you plan?!" he yells in his face, although Coriolanus is taller than him, he raises his hands in surrender in order to calm the angry tribute.

Y/N sighs and softly drops Wolvey´s hand onto the girl's lap, she takes a step forward rests her hand on the tribute´s shoulder gently yet harshly, and pushes against him.

"You get your own mentor, now drop it," she says loudly, the tributes around them purse their lips and keep looking at Coriolanus like he´s some meal they can devour.

"A Capitol´s sweetheart could be helpful, why not kill him to send a fucking message." everyone around them agrees except for Y/N and a few in the back, them equally as terrified as Coriolanus.

Coriolanus laughs at their ´plan´ and breathes out a few pained breathes due to him being pressed against the wall, however, before anyone else gets the chance to speak up, the container they are kept in starts to shake a little and then does a jump that causes everyone to lose their balance. The tribute that held the blonde up against the wall let go of him, the everyone including Coriolanus hold onto the nearest thing they could find to steady themselves.

Y/N yelps at the sudden movement that throws her forward and grabs onto Coriolanus´ right arm, the boy in question sneaks his right arm around her waist to steady her and takes hold of a handle that sticks out of the metal wall.

With a rumble and another much harsher shake of the container, the doors suddenly swing open and the place they were kept in for the past 10 minutes moves upwards, changing the position from vertical to horizontal.

A few screams erupt from the group of tributes, and everyone starts to slide out like bags of flour. Y/N yelps again and tries to hold onto Coriolanus, he manages to hold both of their weights, but Y/N´s grip on him loosens when she wiggles in his grasp.

"Wait- Y/N hold on!" he hisses out, but Y/N moves in his grasp trying to get a hold of Wovey´s hand who´s close to sliding down as well.

"Grab my hand!" she yells, but Wovey slips away, and Y/N watches the little girl and Jessup move out of her view into the unknown.

Y/N removes herself from his grasp, just as Coriolanus can´t hold them up anymore due to the shaking wagon, and they all slide into whatever the Capitol planned for them.

I might consider writing a second part! I hope you enjoyed reading this <33

#coriolanus snow #coriolanus snow x reader #the hunger games #the ballad of songbirds and snakes #tom blyth #tom blyth x reader #x reader #part 2?#fanfic #hunger games x reader #finnick odair x reader #peeta mellark x reader

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keeplcving · 1 year ago

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art deco.

(young president!coriolanus x young!f!plinth!reader)

summary: the president takes notice of Sejanus’ much younger sister, at one of his galas, and cannot let her go.

cw: plinth!reader, innocent!reader, virgin!reader, sejanus lives (and is still friends with coryo), age-gap (coryo is 28, reader is are 18), strabo is a shitty father, sweet!coryo (but only to you), heavy smut, creampie, soft sex, pet names (little one, little dove, darling, etc), cuddling, lmk if i missed anything!

Your eyes adjusted to the darkness inside the Presidential Mansion, a stark contrast to the still-setting sun outside. Your arm is tightly linked with your brother, Sejanus’ arm, as you make your way to the table. You don’t know anyone at this event, not really.

You’re far too young, the next youngest people at the gala are brother’s age, and even still, Sej is 10 years older than you. It makes you feel queasy, knowing most of these men in attendance are nearly old enough to be your father, and they are all staring at you.

Staring at you like you’re a fine piece of meat, and they’re starving for a taste.

You sit down next to your brother, and quickly survey the other guests seated at your table. Clemensia Dovecoat, Festus Creed, Livia Cardew, Persephone Price. All your brother’s age, no one younger. You want to shrink back into your seat, become invisible.

You have no idea why your brother invited you to attend this Gala with him, but you have a feeling it was not with the purest intentions. As you graduated from the Academy, both your parents and your brother were pushing for you to find a suitor, to further better the Plinth name. Frankly, you couldn’t find it in yourself to give a damn, you were far more worried about being successful at the University to find a husband.

“Hello.” A familiar, yet unfamiliar voice breaks you from your reverie. Coriolanus Snow, or should I say President Snow, you think. You couldn’t lie to yourself, he was a very attractive man. Having been very young when your brother began bringing him around to your family’s manor, you only had some vague memories of Coriolanus, however, he has been a close friend to Sejanus, so he’s been around your vicinity for years.

I wouldn’t mind marrying him, your thoughts betray every fiber of your being, who you are. You are an independent woman, you don’t need a man, you need to do well at the University, and score a job. Not fawn over the President of Panem. Oh well, you think, he wouldn’t want anything to do with someone as young as me.

“Hello, Coriolanus.” Your brother greets him warmly, then lightly touching your arm, “I don’t know if you remember my sister, Y/N, but I’ve invited her as my guest tonight.”

“Hello, Mister President.” You say, wanting to roll your eyes at the pomposity of the statement you just spoke. You quickly scanned Coriolanus, and you were not disappointed. Blonde hair slicked back, beautiful blue eyes, a tight crimson suit that perfectly accented the muscular frame you were sure was underneath it.

“No need for the formalities, Ms. Plinth, just call me Coryo.” He responds, giving you (and your body) a quick glance in return. You want to blush at his actions, but you restrain yourself.

“Then call me Y/N, Coryo, Ms. Plinth is much too formal for me.” You bite back, cracking him a smile. He returns it, before turning to your brother.

“Mind if I borrow your sister for a dance, Sej?” He asks your brother, missing the wicked glare that Livia sends you. You’re not sure why she’s upset with you. You knew the President was a single man, which was a rarity in the politicians in Panem. But, you’re no where near his age range. He wouldn’t want you like that, right? He would want someone like Livia, perfect and his age.

“Of course not, thank you for being so kind to her. She’s a little overwhelmed with the gala, as is to be expected. She’s never been to one this formal before.” Sejanus tells Coryo, and you smile weakly, standing up, wobbling slightly in the heels that were a little too high for you.

Coriolanus rounds the table, grasping your hand lightly in his much larger one, leading you to the dance floor in the center of the room. He circles his arms around your waist easily, and you reach up to circle yours around his neck. He begins swaying you gently in time with the music before opening his mouth to speak.

“I don’t remember Sejanus mentioning that he had such a beautiful sister.” He whispers to you, leaning his head down so you could hear his words. He was well over a half a foot taller than you, even with you in your heels. That thought was dizzying.

You blush in response to his words, ducking your head. But you don’t stay that way for any more than a moment, as he brings two of his fingers under your chin, before lifting your chin up, to meet his gaze. “I mean it, dove. You’re simply stunning.”

The flattery was almost too sickly sweet, but you relished in it. “Thank you, Coryo.” You couldn’t think of anything else to say, you had never been in a situation like this. Sure, the boys from the Academy thought you were pretty, but they were nothing compared to the President of Panem.

“You are very welcome, darling. Tell me, how old are you? I cannot remember your dear brother ever mentioning your age.” There it is, you thoughts begin ruining the moment, he will no longer be interested in you once he finds out you are so young.

“I just turned eighteen, I am set to become a student at the University in the fall.” You look into his eyes, expecting to see something, a wavering of interest, anything. But instead, you see nothing.

“I see.” Is all he says, continuing to sway to the music, holding you. His grip tightens lightly, as more people make their way to the dance floor, like he doesn’t want to lose you to someone else, some other man. Like anyone would dare attempt to snatch you away from the President of all people.

“I was expecting you to be a bit older,” He continues, giving you another look, throughly analyzing every part of your body, “Especially when Strabo mentioned to me a potential love match in his darling daughter.”

It’s like a bomb has gone off, shattering your world around you. Of course he wasn’t really interested in you, foolish girl, you think. It was set up, so you could finally find the suitable husband your father had been discussing since it had been deemed socially acceptable to do so.

“A potential… what?” You spat out, not harshly, just in surprise. You couldn’t believe this was happening.

“Love match, darling. But, you may be just a bit too young for me.” He tells you, shattering your heart just a bit. You knew he was too old for you, no matter the attraction you felt for him. Not to mention that your father was simply trying to better the position of the family name by attempting to marrying you off to him.

You weren’t sure what to feel. You wanted Coriolanus, in ways a woman of your social standing shouldn’t. Especially given the age difference that was present between the two of you, however, there was no denying his pure masculine beauty. There was still that thought in the back of your mind that by engaging yourself with Coriolanus, you would be pleasing your father and his wishes for you. In this moment, you knew everything you felt about Coryo would override the disdain you had for pleasing your father.

“I’m not too young.” You almost whine back at him, a light pout forming on your lips as you stare into his impossibly blue eyes. You didn’t want him to see you as too young, you wanted him to see you as just another woman. Who cares that he was nearly ten years older than you?

“Is that so, princess?” He chastises you jokingly, before continuing, “You said you were eighteen, right?” He waits for you to nod, then resumes, “Well, do the arithmetic, little one. If I am twenty eight, and you are eighteen, that leaves us with a ten year difference.”

“I don’t care about that Coryo.” You find yourself frustrated. You wanted him, especially after all of the praise he had given you. Right now, in this moment, the ten years between the two of you didn’t matter. “I find myself rather attracted to you.” You tell him, honestly.

“Is that so, little one?” He asks, smirking at your words. He knew he could mold you into the perfect little wife, so young, so innocent still, unlike the women his age, who already knew what they wanted and simply wanted him for the money and glory that came along with marrying the President.

“Yes, please. I want you. My father was right, about the potential love match. Please, don’t leave me to marry some other man that isn’t twice the man that you are. I know I am young, but that doesn’t matter. I’m old enough to know what I want. Please, Coryo.”

You beg him, not sure exactly why you wanted him so bad. You had just really met him after all. But he was so attractive, so powerful. Something about him enticed you, and you didn’t want to let it go before anything could even potentially happen, before you could see where it progressed between the two of you.

“If you’re so sure, little one. However, this is a conversation we should have somewhere more private, away from prying eyes.” He tells you, raising your hopes ever so slightly. He wasn’t outwardly telling you no, and that you were absolutely too young for him.

Silently, he seizes swaying instead turning you so that you are pressed tightly to his side, one arm firmly grasped around your back, the other arm falling to his side as he led you out the doors to the ballroom, further into the Mansion, and into what you could only assume was his bedroom, gently closing and locking the door behind him, not unnoticed by you.

He is silent for a moment, before speaking, “You mentioned other men. You are going to be mine, little dove. No other men matter to you. I’ve been aware of your age this whole night, and your father and I have been discussing this chance meeting between us for some time now.”

You want to feel disappointed, or disgusted. Your father and Coriolanus, going behind your back, planning your future without a say from you. Planning when you would meet, when would be the right time. You had so many thoughts swirling in your head, it was overwhelming.

“How. Long.” You spat out at him, visibly upset. You wanted him, sure. But if he had been going behind your back, and truly knew of you well before you knew of him, you weren’t as sure. It felt almost predatory, knowing you were barely legal.

“Just over a year, darling.” His words made you want to vomit. Before you were legal. Your father, planning a marriage to a man ten years your senior, when you weren’t even legally able to be married, or have intercourse. You started to sway on your feet, feeling faint. You couldn’t believe it.

Coriolanus reached out a strong arm, steadying you, before grasping your hand and pulling you to sit on the edge of the bed. With you sitting, and he standing, the height difference became even more pronounced. You had to crane your neck to meet his eyes, even when you did not want to.

“A year.” You started, thinking for a moment, choosing your next words carefully. “My father has been meeting with you for a year, to discuss marriage. When I wasn’t even legal!” You yelled at him from your seated position, not feeling stable enough to attempt standing.

“I know it’s wrong, little one. And I am sorry. I only learned of you not being eighteen last night. This entire time, up until last night, I thought you were already eighteen, or older. Your father never mentioned your exact birthday, only that you were of marriage age.”

Your rage for Coriolanus dissipated, the only anger that remained was for your father. You couldn’t take it out on Coryo, who didn’t know you were underage for most of the planning, not until it didn’t matter. He was just as innocent as you.

“It’s alright.” You kept your statement concise, not sure what else to say, without bursting out into tears. You could already feel them welling in your eyes, and you begged them not to fall.

The tears didn’t do unnoticed by Coriolanus, who looks taken aback at the thought of you crying. “Don’t cry, little one. It’s alright, I assure you. I am going to give you some space, and some time alone. You are to wait here, however. I am not forcing you, but I would prefer we continue this conversation when you are ready.”

He leans down, and presses a small kiss against the crown of your head gently before making his way toward the door, grabbing the knob.

“Wait,” You start, tears starting to fall at the thought of him leaving you alone. “Stay, please.” You beg.

“Sweetheart, I can’t. I need to give you space to think. I don’t want to force this upon you.” He tells you honestly, turning the knob.

“But why?” You state, petulant like a child. The child that you still practically are. “Just stay here, with me. I’ve already made up my mind.” You say, standing back up onto your feet, making the few steps to the door, grasping his upper arm gently.

“I can’t.” He says simply, not moving. He looks almost conflicted on right or wrong in this moment. Your lip begins to wobble, as you think about him leaving you.

“But why, Coryo? I already made up my mind. My father may have hid the truth about my age from you, but I want you. Please.” You plead with him, willing him to stay in this room with you.

“I’m way too old for you, my love.” Coriolanus stops turning the knob, though. Standing, waiting for you to speak again. He had to at least partially hear you out, and he wanted to know your rationale.

“And what if I don’t care if you are far too old for me?” It was your last feeble attempt at getting him to stay. If he wanted to stay, it was up to him now. You weren’t going to plead with him, he was a grown man.

“I can see how much you would prefer it if I stay.” He says with a sigh, pulling you into his arms, his warm embrace surrounding you with a feeling you had never acted upon before.

“Coryo,” You whisper, “I want you. I want you so bad.” His eyes widen in surprise at your words, confused on what exactly you meant by wanting him.

“What do you mean, little one?” He doesn’t get the chance to do anything but whisper back that sentence before you were leaning up on your tiptoes, and your lips pressed against his, hard. He doesn’t fight you, quickly kissing back.

He adjusts you so that your back is up against the door, and your fronts are pressed together tightly, without breaking the kiss. He runs his hand along the curves of your waist, before bringing his hands to cup your ass lightly. You let out a gasp, and he uses that to his advantage and slips his tongue into your mouth, tongues tangling.

He then drops his hands to below your knees, sweeping you into his arms, and carrying you back to the bed. He disconnects the kiss, with a whine falling from your lips, lightly setting you down on the bed.

“Are you sure, little dove? I can stop if you aren’t sure.” You appreciated his concern in this moment, but all you wanted was him. You vocalized that to him, and he smiled. He pulled you, so that your feet were dangling off the edge of the bed, where he was still standing. Getting down on his knees at your feet, he gently unbuckled the heel, and removed it from your foot, one foot at a time. As he removed the shoe, he ran a hand over the soft skin, before pressing a kiss to the sole of your foot.

He kissed his way up your legs, up to your thighs, being met with the skirt of your dress. He flipped the skirt up, over your hips, and met your eyes again as his hands made their way to the edge of your underwear.

“Still alright, little one?” He asked, thumbs in the band of the underwear, waiting for permission to pull them down. You nodded at him, with a weak grin. Coriolanus smiled back at you, before pulling the panties down your legs, over your ankles.

He spread your legs, so that your wet heat was visible to him. He grinned, before leaning down and licking a teasing stripe up your pussy, You moaned lewdly, legs closing around his head, locking him in place. He continued his broad licks, eventually moving to circle your clit until you were twitching. He stuck his tongue inside of your hole a few times, and that was enough. You gushed around his tongue, quickly becoming overstimulated and pushing his head away.

As he brought his head out from between your thighs, you noticed his face was covered in your juices, and you laughed. He cracked a smile at you, allowing you to breathe for a few moments together. He gently helped you to your feet, to your confusion for a moment, until he spun you so that he could unzip your dress.

Once you were fully bared to him, dress gently placed on a chair in the corner, he began to undress for you. The suit jacket first, then the button up, revealing his pale yet well formed chest that had you licking your lips in anticipation. His shoes were toed off, and socks removed too. He leaned in and kissed you sweetly before removing his slacks and boxers, cock springing up, very obviously hard, the tip nearly purple as he looked at you.

You felt intimidated. You were a virgin, and his cock was so long, and so thick. You knew it was going to hurt, and you hoped he wouldn’t let it hurt you too bad.

“Coryo,” You whispered, “I’m a virgin.” He stopped, and looked you directly in the eyes.

“That’s alright, little one. I’ll be careful, so so gentle. I promise.” He tells you earnestly, and you smile at him, nodding. You trusted him, he had never lied to you before, not willingly.

He gently pushed you back onto the bed, before climbing on top of you, his strong forearms next to your head. He grabbed his cock, positioning it with your hole, before gently beginning to push in.

You flinched at the intrusion, body wincing at the pain from his cock splitting you open. Tears sprung back into your eyes, and he stopped pushing in, giving you a moment to adjust. He kissed you, making out lightly for a moment.

“You can keep going.” You said, breaking the kiss. You hissed as he kept pushing, but eventually, he was fully sheathed inside of you, and the sting had dulled down to a pressure inside of you. You looked down, and you could see a faint outline of his cock on your stomach and you smirked.

“Look, darling.” You directed him to where you were looking and he smirked back at you.

“Look at you, little one. Your body is taking me so beautifully.” He responded beginning slow, thrusts in and out, keeping tempo.

“Please, Coryo. More!” You begged him, and he began thrusting faster, pressing into a spot inside of you that made you see stars. You moaned loudly at that feeling, his cock slamming into it every time he thrust back in. You couldn’t stop letting out little noises of pleasure, it felt too good. He let out little grunts too, praising you for taking him so well, being such a good little girl.

“Rub your clit for me, darling.” He directed you, breathing becoming heavier, thrusts more erratic. You could tell he was close, but you wanted to orgasm with him. You rubbed your clit harshly, moaning, and tightening around his cock.

“I’m so close!” You cried out, circling faster as he continued to pound in and out of you.

“As am I, little one.” He grunted back. “Come for me, darling. I’ll come for you.”

You allowed yourself to come, soaking his cock with his juices, and he spurted deep inside of you. He groaned as he pulled out, immediately missing the tight warmth of your cunt.

“You did fantastic, love.” He tells you, falling nearly on top of you, worn from the excursion. You gently scratch his scalp with your fingers, soothing him.

“I should be telling you that,” You laugh, continuing to massage his head.

“You are mine now, darling.” He grunts, completely blissed out, resting his head on your chest. “Age does not matter to me, little one.”

“That’s what I’ve been telling you.” You rolled your eyes, smiling at him. “I am to be yours, forever.”

“Mine.” He agrees. You don’t say anything back, basking in the afterglow. After tonight, you know that your future plans have shifted, and you couldn’t find it in you to care. You still had that independent woman in you, but now, with a powerful man by your side. You’d found yourself a wonderful man in the President of Panem, and you didn’t plan on letting him go.

©keeplcving 2024. please let me know what you think, and feel free to send me requests! :)

#coriolanus snow fic #coriolanus snow fanfiction #coriolanus snow #coriolanus snow x reader #coriolanus smut #coriolanus fanfiction #coriolanus x reader #coriolanus x you #coriolanus x y/n

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thehorsewaslee · 4 months ago

Text

Lily of the valley

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WC: 7.9K

Warnings; Female reader, No reader body/race descriptions (if any pls lmk)A little ooc. NO USE OF Y/N. English is not my first language. Sn*w is here a little more than I would like. Btw every time I make fun of him I’m targeting his description in the book, not just throwing strays at the actor I promise. Actually, 90% of the characters I picture are from the book. (I haven’t seen the movie.)

Summary; 3 months in district 12 can change a lot about a man, ask Sejanus. Covey!reader. Fluff but the ending isn’t nice lol mb.

A/N: EDIT!! 27/04: I changed the ending lol

Idk if this is unpopular but pk!Sejanus>>>>Capitol!Sejanus. Buzzcut included. I SAID WHAT I SAID

Masterlist

The Covey’s performance truly was a must-see sight, bringing life to an otherwise desolate country. He wondered how different the capitol would be if they had something like them, so full of passion and pretend freedom, capable of making even the most prideful of miners get up to swing some. His spot from the back by Coryo gave him a full view of the attendants as well as the stage, the colourful outfits swirling around giving the eye a show to go with the tunes. In Coryo’s deference, Lucy Gray was a fantastic singer, he could see why he’d leave everything behind to listen to her voice, not that either of them really had a choice. At least one of them was benefiting from the next twenty or so years. Though he found the two of them a strange pair; she was his polar opposite, but who is he to judge?

A boisterous round of applause erupted as the band each took their bows, signaling the end of their set. He gave them a few loud whistles of approval, bringing his hands together with the rest of the crowd. He looked a little sheepish, standing next to his friend who was only applauding softly.

Even in joy, there’s a code of conduct… he thinks, rolling his eyes inwardly.

Even if this isn’t his district, he felt right at home. There were no rules here, no specific expectations or watchful judgy eyes. It was pure, rowdy, unfiltered feelings for the eyes to witness. They were much more alike than the capitol would wish for them to know, from the very first to the very last district. He observed a few drunk men sway together to an old miner’s tune, arms around one another for support as some other guys drummed on stools. He had a half mind to join them, but he wasn’t an exceptional singer. Not that they were, either, but he was contempt just watching them attempt to dance.

Lucy Gray made her way through the sweaty bodies that parted for her presence, picking off a few wildflowers from adoring fans as she had her sights sent on the only blond head in the crowd. Hot on her trail, one of the younger members of the team had been desperately clawing at her skirt in an attempt to get her attention, but it came to no fruition, the brunette was determined to reach her fling. An attempt at an introduction was made, but Lucy Gray clearly had her mind set on getting Coryo alone, barely allowing a quick name exchange before she swept him away, leaving Sejanus alone with the younger girl. He crossed his arms awkwardly, leaning on the wall as he exchanged a look with the kid; his of boredom and hers of exasperation. She studied his figure, narrowing her eyes at his buzzed hair, taking a moment to make the connection.

“Do you know him?” She peeped, sighing a little at the end as she pointed over to where Coryo and Lucy Gray disappeared.

“We’re…friends.” He shrugged a little.

“You’re a peacekeeper too?” It was more of a statement than a question, his haircut already outing him.

“I guess.”

“Like him? From the capitol?”

“Is this an interrogation, ma’am?” He smiled down at her, causing her to giggle a little, breaking her serious demeanor.

“I’m Maude Ivory,” She stuck her hand up for him to shake.

“Sejanus Plinth.” He gave her little palm a firm, gentle shake.

“Can I ask you a favour? I would ask what’s his name, but Lucy Gray is a bit caught up with him right now…” she trailed off, pouting a little.

“Anything for you,” He tugged at his pants, crouching down to meet her eye to eye.

A smile bloomed on her face, she brought a hand up to tuck a strand of hair behind her ear.

“Our cousin, she’s being held for some petty accusation, she’s been there ever since Lucy Gray got reaped!” Her words all but spilled out, the issue having clearly been weighing on her mind. “I just want to make sure she’s okay! If you can tell her that Lucy Gray is back, and if you could maybe get her anything to eat- or any help- or tell them she’s innocent- or- ”

“Slow down, slow down,” He soothed, arms gesturing in front of him. “Can you give me a name?”

At the end of their exchange, your name hung loosely on his tongue as he strolled back the short distance to his quarters. The town was quiet, busted cobblestone made for an uncomfortable path as he thought of his little exchange with the girl. Petty crime, she said, he wondered what that really was. From his short time here, he’d gathered that most peacekeepers were pretty easy going, often only here for temporary placement and definitely eager to get out of the slums. Whatever it is you did, must’ve been significant enough to warrant an arrest. It was late, but his curiosity was eating away at him, plus the security at this hour would likely be a bit more lenient.

He asked the sergeant by the cell block about your details, earning a skeptical look from him. Ultimately, he pointed him in the right direction, and Sejanus took a small serving of his ma’s cookies to offer to you.

The block contained a pathetic grand total of 4 cells and 1 temporary holding cell, each being a small room with a surprisingly sturdy metal door, only a small opening at eye level to allow him to look in, as well as one by the bottom for food. He tiptoed over to cell number 3, knocking on the door which caused a loud sound to echo into the room. He could have just opened the small window, but his ma raised him better. He heard quiet shuffling from inside. It was late, he must’ve woken you up.

“Can’t help ya if I can’t see ya,” You groaned, voice laced with sleep. “Genius,” you muttered that last part, but he heard you, and opened the barrier between you two just in time to catch your eye roll. He could only see the top half of your face, the rest of the room behind you was pitch black, making it a miracle that you were even able to find the door.

“Maude Ivory sent me,” He whispered, wasting no time. At that, your eyes softened and he felt more at ease. “Cookie?”

He clumsily pushed one through the narrow hole not meant for such an exchange. You accepted it with grace, narrowing your eyes at him skeptically. You were pretty good with faces, even just half of ones, but his was unfamiliar. You made the connection between that and the fact that you heard some of the older peacekeepers grumbling about new recruit training.

“You new?”

He smiled, and you could tell by the way his eyes narrowed. “That obvious?”

You chuckled, rubbing the sleep from your eyes. You doubt that he was there to flirt, like some of the others are, taking advantage of your inability to walk away. After all, he mentioned your cousin.

“What did she say?”

“What?” He had been lost in thought. “Oh! Lucy Gray is back, she’s alive and well.”

The breath had been knocked out of your lungs and you struggled to keep your thoughts in check. “Are- are you sure? You ain’t messin’ with me?”

“Nope, saw her perform just an hour ago.”

“Oh my-” The relief that washed over you was overwhelming. You spent the last who knows how long in this cell, heart aching at her departure. Every cell in your body believed that she’d be dead, that they’d send her back in a box. You spent your days in this cell mourning her. Your cousin was back. Your head rested on the cool metal of the door as you tried to blink away the tears of relief.

“She also wanted to know if you were okay.”

“Yes! Yes I’m fine.” You were a bit enthusiastic, feeling oddly out of breath. “Thank you, you have no idea how much all this means to me, thank you.”

Pride bloomed in his chest, really feeling like he was already making a difference. He nodded his head in appreciation, almost walking away before…well he just had to know.

“Can I ask you a question?”

“Sure, go ahead.”

“What are you in for?”

You giggled, “Well if I told you, I’d be admitting it, won’t I? Nice try though.”

“That wasn’t my intention I-”

“I know. Don’t sweat it.”

He sighed, stepping away from your door to head back to his bunk, before you called him back.

“You’re supposed to pull the shutter closed.”

“Right.” He scurried back, eyes locked with yours as he hesitated with the task.

“Thank you again. Have a goodnight.”

You said it so sweetly, it almost made him freeze in place, desperate to hear you speak more. You were covey, of course you sounded like music.

“You too,” He begrudgingly pulled it closed, losing sight of you.

…

He could clearly see why the covey would spend their time out here, a gentle breeze rustling the grass served as a great soundtrack for such a view. He felt a little sheepish, tagging along Coryo and his girlfriend, but he really had nothing better to do. He had never really been this immersed in wildlife before, the feeling was quite refreshing. The sun out there was a lot more forgiving than in the capitol, being more of a gentle kiss than a scorching slap. He opted not to swim this time around, seeing as the couple was practically eating each others faces off in the water, so he didn't want to intervene.

He took a spot close enough to the water, but far enough so that he was still hidden in the tall grass. The ground was quite rough on his back, but not unwelcome. He shut his eyes, his hands resting behind his freshly buzzed head. The sounds of splashing water along with dancing leaves were slowly lulling him into a quiet afternoon nap.

Oh, he could get used to this.

He felt all his worries begin slipping away, all the thoughts of what his life had abruptly come to fading out with the birdsong. Maybe he had been raised a city boy, but he wasn’t doing too bad with nature for the time being. Guilt had attempted to sneak into his mind at the thought of his ma, alone in the capitol, but she’d understand, she always did. Especially if she’d seen this place.

For the first time in his life, Sejanus felt his shoulders release their tension fully at the thought of being a no-body. He’s not the traitor they said he was in 2, not the district scum they said he was in the capitol, either. Here, he was just Sejanus. No expectations were upon him anymore to act a certain way or bite his tongue from talking back.

He was just about to fall asleep when a figure blocked the sun’s rays from his face, dripping a few water droplets onto him, one landing directly into his open eyes.

Maude Ivory.

He sat up suddenly, squinting his eye from both the bright light and the lakewater that had begun burning his sclera.

“Didya find her?” She leaned down to him.

“Yes, ma’am. She said she was fine.”

“Do you know when she’ll be out?”

He shrugged, “They won’t tell me these things. I doubt they knew, anyway. What is she bein’ held for?”

Maude Ivory bit her lip, looking around as if trying to detect if anyone had been listening in. She plopped down by his side. “Someone snuck into the mayor’s house, left a bunch of mice in there. They think it was her.”

He leaned in closer, “Was it?”

Her brows shot up, eyes widening, then narrowing in suspicion. “I don’t know, depends on who’s askin’”

He chuckled, “S’ js’ me, Maude Ivory.”

She turned her head to where Lucy Gray and snow were, once again, doing things that should not be done in front of the general public. She made a face at them, not that they were aware.

“I don’t like your friend.” She turned back to him, hands playing with some daisies by her foot. “Don’t trust him.” She grumbled as her hands began making a flower crown from muscle memory.

“You can trust me, though.” He cocked his head at her, only wanting to know out of curiosity.

She looked up at him with admiration, nodding softly.

“Okay…I’m tellin on her.” That earned a gasp from her as her eyes widened frantically. “I’ kiddin’, m’ kiddin! Bad joke on my part, sorry.”

She let out a sigh of relief, slapping his thigh with all her might before she got up to place the crown on his head. He couldn’t help the stupid smile that made it’s way onto his face.

“Wanna swim?”

“Was actually hoping I could just-”

“Lucy Gray!” Your voice boomed across the clearing, having spotted her in the water. You ran with all the energy you had in you to where she was as she swam back up to the wooden pathway into the water. You two met in a crushing hug, having previously thought her surely dead. The force of your run knocked you both off balance, landing you an impromptu dip in the lake, despite the fact that you were fully clothed.

Maude Ivory grabbed his hand with excitement, “Cmon!”

Lucy Gray resurfaced first, being helped back up by Coryo. Without giving it much thought, he crouched down, extending a strong hand out to you.

“Need a hand?”

You took him up on his offer, your dress making your movements a lot more sluggish. Plus, your muscles ached from sleeping in that dingy cell for about 2 weeks.

He stood off to the side, Coryo joining him, as they observed your heartwarming reunion.

“I thought you’d be dead!”

“I told you to have a little faith in me.”

“You talked to Jessup’s family?”

“No-I…couldn’t bring myself to.”

“S’ alright, I’ll go. How was the capitol?” You giggled mockingly, as if you were asking your cousin about some vacation she’d been on.

“Nothin’ fancy-”

“How did you even survive?”

At that question, Lucy Gray moved aside to allow you to look at the blonde, who stood smart- but shirtless, and his much, much finer, taller friend. Their haircuts stood out to you, recognising them as ones that belonged to-

Peacekeepers.

Lucy Gray had brought two peacekeepers along to the Covey’s spot.

Now, you were no stranger to buttering soldiers up, but this was a bit out of line. A lot out of line actually. Lucy gray put her arms around the blond’s shoulders, a dopey smile on her lips as they made love eyes at each other. Sejanus bit back his smile as he watched your expression change from confusion to pure disgust, with no attempt at hiding it.

“This is Coriolanus, he helped me win.”

Anus stuck his hand out to you for a formal introduction, a futile attempt at winning you over. You looked between his hand, Lucy gray’s face and the rest of him.

“Lucy gray, may I talk to you- for a minute. Over there?” You pointed to a tree far enough away.

Sejanus watched from afar as you tore into her, arms flailing around with a shocked face.

“This will not end well.” Maude Ivory peeped from his side, facepalming, which made him giggle a little. “She really doesn’t get along with peacekeepers.”

“Is she your cousin, Maude Ivory?” Coryo asked, hand fiddling with his dog tag.

“We’re all cousins, just not by blood, anyway.”

“A peacekeeper? Are you serious? Do you want to hang, Lucy Gray?”

“It ain’t like that- he’s from the capitol-”

“They all are! You ain’t helping your case!”

The argument only dragged on, both sides holding onto their opinions with force. Eventually, you parted ways, with Lucy Gray returning to Coryo, and you turning to find your way back home. Most of your clothes were still a little damp, and even though it was the middle of summer, you ought to change out of them soon, lest you catch a cold.

Maude Ivory, once again, pulled Sejanus along, citing that you had not gotten the chance to talk to him yet.

“Wait up!” She called out, causing you to stop and turn around. When they finally caught up to you, she took a moment to catch her breath before introducing you two.

“...This is Sejanus.”

You gave him a tight lipped nod, still uneasy and wary of his presence.

“He’s the one that spoke to you yesterday! I told him I wanted to get some news to you and he helped me.”

You straightened up at the reveal, “Oh! It’s you!” You recognised his eyes, “That was an awfully kind thing of you to do. Thank you once more…officer.”

He mirrored your position of clasped hands behind your back, smiling at the title.

“Please don’t call me that. Sejanus is fine.”

He had such a dizzying smile, so genuine for someone stationed here for the capitol, his eyes barely showing, that it made you lose your train of thought for a second.

“Right. Thank you, Sejanus.”

“Any time, consider me at your service.”

You looked down shyly, bottom lip tucked behind your teeth so that you don’t giggle like an idiot, while he took the chance to observe you. Surely there must be something in the water here, because, in all his years of life, he’d never seen-

“Eugh!” Maude Ivory fake gagged at the two of you, causing you to shoot her a pointed look.

“Right,” You sighed. “I best be goin’ now.” You shot him one final smile before he watched you disappear between the trees.

He made his way back to his spot, catching a glimpse of the other couple still enjoying the water.

“I think she likes you.” Maude Ivory sing-songed.

“Really? What makes you think that?”

“She did the thing where she-” She mimicked your movements of looking away and biting your lip, before ending her performance with an exaggerated eye-roll. “Plus, you’re just her type, so.”

“Really, and what is that?”

“Tall, dark, handsome. Kind. ‘Sad eyes’, whatever that means.”

“You think I’m handsome?”

“No.”

“Okay. Thanks.”

“Anytime.”

….

He used to dance with his ma in the kitchen on nights where both of them were overwhelmed. He’d spent the better part of a year trying to get his brain to put the steps and the beat together, finding it difficult to keep up. Eventually, he was able to nail it down beautifully, keeping the district swing dance tradition alive in him. The one his ma taught him was a little different, but it was close enough to the point where he could always guess the next move as he tapped his foot along to the music from the back of the hob. It was a wedding, or a celebration of some union, so the people were dressed in their best suites, making the night truly one he would remember.

“Care for a dance, officer?”

He hadn’t noticed your presence that night, much less your approach to where he was posted. Last he saw you, you were fresh out of detention, now your face seemed a lot brighter, the colour having returned to it. You looked well rested, too, wearing an outfit similar in fashion to what the covey would typically wear.

“Thought I asked you not to call me that.” He raised a teasing brow, looking down at you.

“Right. Care for a dance, Sejanus?”

“M’ afraid I’ll step on your toes.” He wasn’t really, he didn’t know why he said that. But what he didn’t expect was,

“S’alright, don’t need 'em for much anyway!”

You grabbed his hand, pulling him onto the dancefloor, he used the same hand to pull you flush into him, his other finding its way to your side and you narrowed your eyes at him skeptically, having a funny feeling that he wasn’t being truthful about his skills.

When the next musical bridge began, you began to move in tandem with steps you were familiar with, surprised to see him not only keeping up, but also leading you through. You moved to the music, stepping apart to clap before joining each other once more. You were so lost in the rush, barely noticing as the crowd cleared the floor, leaving only the two of you. The beats got faster, but so did your steps. There was a permanent smile on your lips as you etched your brows together in concentration, Sejanus just barely breaking a sweat. At the familiar final crescendo, he twisted your arms across your body, pulling you flush against his chest, keeping you there for a beat before letting go of one hand and pushing you away into a twirl. You were just about registering what was happening when he snaked his free arm around you, ending the number with a dip.

You both stayed in this position for a second, only to be applauded by the audience you hadn’t realised had formed. You stood back up, a little awkwardly smoothing your dress down and fixing your jewellery, letting go of his hand in the process. The clapping didn’t stop, so, in true covey fashion, you grabbed his hand once more, nodding at him to take a bow with you.

The noise finally dwindled down as the couples got ready to say their vows and end the night, crowds reforming around the two of you. You held his gaze, biting your lip in playful disbelief. He was panting a little, a proud look on his face. He was about to say something, when Coryo pulled on his shoulder jokingly, forcing him to look at him, but Sejanus looked right back to where you were, finding your figure retreating to the Hob’s exit. Coryo was rambling about something he was too dazed to figure out, mind set on following you. So, he wordlessly picked his friend’s hand off him and set off behind you.

The air outside was refreshing, the amount of sweaty bodies in the place had made it borderline humid, along with the brewing drinks. Sejanus had broken out into a light jog, finding no sign of you in the immediate vicinity of the exit, steps only illuminated by pure moonlight. But due to the lack of light pollution in the district, it made everything clear as day. He furrowed his brows, confused at your absence, before he took a few more steps to find you leaning on the side of the building, tucked away from the exit’s proximity. His face softened, the lovestruck smile finding its way back onto his lips.

“You alright?” He treaded the short steps towards you carefully.

“Yeah,” you let out a short, breathy laugh. “M’fine, just needed some air.”

He nodded reassuringly, taking his spot next to you, leaning back on the wall with his hands behind his back. You looked up at him, tongue in cheek as you scrunched your nose.

“So much for steppin’ on my toes.” You rolled your eyes. “They teach you that at your academy?”

“No- uh…Used to dance with my ma, she taught me.”

“Your…ma?”

He nodded and you narrowed your eyes at him again.

“I can’t figure you out, Sejanus.”

He chuckled, “I’m from 2, born and raised.”

“No kiddin?” Your brows shot up, everything suddenly making sense. Namely the sheer differences between him and his friend.

“Yeah. Moved to the capitol when I was 8, then I spent the rest of the time there with my ma an-”

“Wait, wait, wait.” You stood up straighter, “What do you mean moved to the capitol?”

“We- My father, bought a place there and we finished some paper work and we moved.” He sounded unsure, scared that he’d accidentally reveal who exactly he was, unsure if the Plinth name had ever crossed your path. It would ruin the life he’d pictured for himself here.

“That…must’ve costed a fortune…”

“It did.”

You whistled, ending the tune with a pop. “Didn’t even know you could do that…”

The air between you felt heavy as you mulled over the weight of his words. “And your friend, mr. forecast, he district born?”

“Forecast-oh I get it, cause Snow.” He snorted, “No, purebred Capitol.”

“Knew it.” You grimaced. “And how’d you two end up here?”

“Well,” he rubbed his chin. “I snuck into the hunger games’ arena.”

“Why?”

“We had to mentor some of the tributes for our final academy project and something happened with my tribute-he was my friend. They…Never mind, long story short is, I wanted to give him a proper district farewell and it got me in trouble. I knew it would, js didn’t care.”

“A rebel.”

He sucked on his teeth, “That’s a naughty word.”

You giggled.

“So this is your punishment? Peacekeeping?”

“Yup, for the next 20 or so years.”

“Wow,”

“Yeah.”

“You’re properly stuck with us. Don’t worry, we’ll put you to good use. Maybe you can even perform with those quick feet of yours.”

He laughed, looking down to his shoes awkwardly.

“And how are you liking 12?”

He took a deep breath in, hands finding their way to his hips as he puffed his chest out.

“S’ nice. Been a while since I’ve listened to music, so that’s a plus. They’ve got lots of pretty girls here, too.”

You looked over to him from the side, “Oh yeah?”

He turned to fully face you, stepping in front of you and cocking his head. “Yeah.” He shot you a quick wink. It caught you off guard, causing you to look away into the distance so that you don’t make a fool out of yourself. He watched you struggle to keep a smile at bay, lips quivering with giddy as you bit and tugged them back into place. You fake coughed in order to compose yourself, looking back into his welcoming eyes.

“Well, we are happy to have you here, Sejanus. S’ nice to see someone who can dance so well, you ought to give folks classes.”

“I’ll need a partner for that.”

You sighed playfully, “I’ll try to find someone willing to sacrifice their nights to dance with you, officer. But it might be difficult.” You shrugged.

“My apologies, I meant I’ll need one specific partner for that.”

“Oh yeah, who’dya have in mind?”

Sejanus swallowed thickly, feeling the rush course through his veins. He’d been emboldened by the animosity he had in the district, placing a tender hand at you side as he pushed you back into the wall a little, abruptly crashing his lips onto yours.

It was a welcome surprise, really. Hesitating for a moment before you moved your lips with his. Soft music was still pouring out of the hob, the gentle night’s glow making the scene something straight out of a movie. His hands came up to keep you in place as yours cupped his cheek, stroking your thumb against his skin lightly.

“Where have you- oh?”

You pulled apart suddenly to find Lucy Gray standing with a very shocked expression on her face, eyebrows practically touching her hairline with how high they were. A sly smirk made it’s way onto her face as she cocked her head at the two of you, caught red handed. You cleared your throat, fixing the sides of your dress that were still warm from where he’d kept his hands.

“Coriolanus was askin if I saw where his friend went. Said they need to be headin back. And I needed to find where you went, cause I needed a hand with the instruments, cause we also need to be headin back.”

“Alright,” It was difficult to find your voice, breath having been knocked clean out of your lungs just moments earlier, so it only came out as a little peep.

You walked past her awkwardly as Sejanus followed in step, shooting her a sweet smile as she turned to watch you walk back in. Inside, you found that the others had already put most of the stuff away, allowing you to leave the place together almost immediately. Coriolanus was conversing with Sejanus, which meant you couldn’t pull his attention to bid him goodnight without your cousin noticing again, so you bargained with the idea of maybe stopping by their training yard sometime this week.

….

Bang! Bullseye.

He remembers when he first fully learned how to handle a gun, scurrying off to show all his friends his new talent. It was, of course, very impressive, even back then. For as long as he could remember, he could feel that the gun was an extension of him, only because he was so familiar with it.

Now, however, he wished that he could just miss. Even when he tried to; it looked way too calculated for it to be his natural aim. He knew it sounded stupid.

Oh look at me I’m Sejanus and I’m so sad because I’m just way too good at shooting things right oh woe is me.

He could practically hear Coriolanus’ seething by his side, struggling to land a single shot. But all he really wanted to be was a medic. It was no secret, in fact everyone knew, that Sejanus Plinth was a lover and not a fighter. And he never will be. But on the plus side, it got him in with Commander Hoff pretty quick, which meant he could take most training days off.

He didn’t want to only see you when he’s trailing behind Coryo, which is why he opted to hang back that day, find you on his own terms. He asked about date spots around the base, but, being 90% men who are seconds away from putting a bullet in their own skulls, turned up with mostly nothing. The only piece of info he got was that there was a girl that works at the bakery, maybe she could help him. So he decided he’d be using that evening to explore the town a bit, stopping first by the candy shop to grab a few bags of gumdrops, the next spot being the cosy little bakery that was cast in a warm yellow light.

The door jingled open with a short tune, the warmth of the ovens inevitably hitting him in the face. He’s sure that comes as a relief during winter, but during this hot month it only made his clothes feel sticky. The place was old, exposed brick all around with a wooden countertop opposite to the door. There was no display or anything of the sort, you had to use your imagination, but the smell of freshly baked goods helped. It was cozy, and reminded him of his ma’s baking. He waited for a good minute in silence due to the lack of an attending to take his requests. He felt a little stupid, coming here with the ulterior motive of dating advice. Eventually, someone walked out with their head in a small notebook as they scribbled something.

Of course. The girl in the bakery shop was you. Now he looked even more stupid.

You hadn’t noticed him yet, muttering a ‘one second..’ with your brows furrowed as you fit some calculations in your mind. When you finally looked up at him, the smile found its way back to you.

“Sejanus! Hi! What’re you doin’ here?”

“Thought I’d come to try any of the local delicacies,”

You giggled, “so what can I getcha?”

“What would you recommend?”

You bit your lip, looking quickly off to the side to check that no one was there.

“Well, I’m not supposed to offer it, but I just made a batch of muffins, fresh out the oven. Hold on.”

He was a little confused, watching as you disappeared into the kitchen and came back shortly with a steaming hot chocolate muffin, handing it to him in a brown paper bag.

“Anythin’ else you recommend?”

“Well…no. We mostly just make bread here, there’s not a high demand for treats.”

“Alright, what do I owe ya?”

“Hm? Oh! Nothin’, it’s on the house.”

“I can’t accept that,”

“Well, I’m not supposed to be sellin’ them anyway, so I can’t ask for money on something that wasn’t for sale.”

“How come?”

“They’re for the mayor, he’s hostin’ a dinner or somethin’ tonight. They’re one of the only folk that could afford these things.”

“So you’re giving me someone else’s property?”

“No, silly. We always make extra, for tastin’. Baker’s dozen.”

“So this one is yours?”

“Uhh..” you shrugged. “I guess.”

“Please, I can’t-”

“You’re goin to get me in trouble, Sejanus.”

He sighed, watching your giddy face. What was he even here for? Oh. Right. Date ideas.

Well, it seemed counterintuitive to ask you like this, might as well just ask you out properly.

“What time do you finish work?”

You checked your empty wrist. “Well, we close in an hour, but I’ve got to leave in 30 minutes to make the delivery. Afterwards I’m done.”

“I can wait 30 minutes. Then we can split the muffin!”

You chuckled, dropping your head before straightening up suddenly at the sound of your boss walking in. She was a petite old woman, but had the bite of a wild dog, running the little bake shop like the military.

“Can we help you?” She raised a brow at him.

“Oh, he just wanted somethin’ sweet-”

“And you told him we’re fresh out, right?” Her tone was angry, accusatory.

“Of course. What could I have even offered him.”

Sejanus held back a smile at your aversion to the woman.

He cleared his throat, “Well, I’ll be on my way.” He grabbed a bill from his pocket, stuffing it into the near empty tip jar. The woman was unamused, a questioning look on her face as he retreated slowly.

“You’ve got…great employees…”

Your hand came up to cover your face to attempt to stifle your laughter at his actions as you shook your head.

It was 30 short minutes later that you exited the shop with the boxes in your hands. You didn’t really expect him to have actually waited for you, but there he was, crouched on your steps.

“You didn’t have to wait for me,”

“I know,”

He got up, immediately grabbing the boxes out of your hands as you led the way to the mayor’s house, promising that you’ll stop by a nice spot to share the muffin later.

“I thought the covey didn’t work?”

“Not all of us, just those old enough. Singin’ n’ dancin’ doesn’t always pay the bills.”

“Hm.”

“Did you come to the bakery for me?”

“What? Oh. No.” He chuckled. “Was actually askin’ around about where a fella could take his girl out on a date, they pointed me to ask the girl in the bake shop.”

“His girl? Don’t recall you askin’.” You bumped into him.

He didn’t reply, keeping his eyes straight ahead to avoid embarrassment.

“Well, if you’re still lookin for answers, I’d say a great first date would be swing dancin’ at the hob, that’s what most folks do anyway. Though, it’s a rare event, you’d have to wait till it happens again.”

He laughed. “Well, what if he wanted to do somethin’ sooner?”

“Well then, you two could go swimmin’, or have a picnic in the meadow. Maybe you she could cook you a nice meal. I’d recommend you just ask her, but what do I know?” You crossed your arms over your chest. He dropped his head down, admitting defeat.

You’d finally reached the mayor’s house, taking the goods from his hands and handing them over. The man gave you two a skeptical look, unhappy that the likes of the Covey were mixing in with the peacekeepers. He was especially disgruntled that you were the one making his delivery, considering he wasn’t especially fond of you, so he gave no tip, citing that he’ll make the transaction with the bakery’s owner.

Sejanus watched the whole interaction in discomfort, it reminded him of how they’d treat him, well, everywhere. But he tried to push that thought away to allow himself to enjoy the night. He followed after you in silence as you led him past the seam, but only by a little, to a willow tree atop a hill that overlooked a valley. It was peaceful, not that district 12 was loud, but you two were alone here. Secluded in plain sight. You sat side-by-side as he split the Muffin, handing the bigger half over to you. You took a small bite, wanting to savour every crumb of it, all but moaning at your work.

“I’ve really outdone myself, limited resources an’ all. But then again, when do I not.”

“It’s great to see it hasn’t affected your humility,”

“I know. I’m so humble, it should be studied.”

You two chuckled and you watched him eat the rest of his share in silence. He had tried not to be so bashful under your gaze, like you were trying to read him, inside out, but it proved difficult.

“Tell me about 2,” You cocked your head.

His brows shot up momentarily, then he let out a sigh. How much could he tell you about his home without slipping in the fact that his family-his father had a hand in the capitol’s victory.

Would you still look at him the same? If you knew that they handed weapons over more than voluntarily, would it matter?

“It was like here, kind people. Less nature.”

“Oddly vague for a description of your home, dontcha think?” You sensed his unease. “Nevermind, tell me on your own terms.”

“No- It’s just-”

“It’s ok, really. Tell me about your ma?”

He felt his shoulders relax.

You two stayed there until the sun began to make it’s presence known over the horizon, talking about everything and nothing. He ended up napping with his head in your lap as you sang softly, unwilling to shake him awake for duty. You knew you needed to, otherwise, he’d get scolded, but he just looked so peaceful, all his previous troubles and worries. You could tell he was going to be trouble on your heart, a man far sweeter than the world would let him.

And you kissed him awake anyway.

…

Almost 3 months later.

…

Bang!

Your form had improved greatly since you’d started practicing, all thanks to your amazing teacher, or so he called himself. It was just another thing to keep you two busy, a fun activity you enjoyed together. While you were hesitant at first, seeing as he snuck his gun out to show you, but you came around. It was actually more entertaining than you’d like to admit, though you only shot stationary targets, cans and other pieces of trash. Usually, he’d sit back with a proud smile, watching the contrast between your clothes and the weapon. He’d get up after a while, lazily grabbing the firearm from you to show off, earning a kiss for every bullseye.

Bullseye.

He hated that.

Today, however, his eyes are glued to the ground, brows etched with sadness as he remained deep in thought. On other occasions, he would’ve been thinking about his future, what he wants for his life here, but today he’s thinking about that letter.

Back to the Capitol. Coryo is going back to the Capitol.

And he doesn’t know why it bothers him so much, but maybe the comfort of having a familiar face here being taken away made him uneasy. It made him second guess everything, not that he had the option to go back, but he was suddenly hyper aware of the fact that he’s unlikely to see his ma for a long long time. He had already pictured a life for himself here when he got on that train months ago; a nice girl, a family, a small house by the clinic he worked at- will work at, and it was all coming nicely. Hell, just the image of you was enough to root him in 12 for good, but his friend’s departure was hitting him more than he would like to admit.

His head shot up at the sound of your tsk, finding you struggling with reloading the gun. He wasn’t stupid, he’d seen you do it a dozen times over without his help, you were only pretending to struggle so that he could get up to help you, snake his arms around you and shoot straight with your back flush against his chest. What a minx.

But he’d humour you anyway.

He gently took the gun from your hands, resetting the cartilages before shooting the last three standing targets, one shot after the other.

Bullseye.

You grabbed his chin, bringing your lips to his in three short pecks. His eyes shut subconsciously, savouring your final few kisses.

“What’s goin’ on, pretty boy?”

He blushed, chuckling before turning his attention back to his fingers fiddling with the gun. “Nothin, js’ thinkin’.”

He repositioned himself, trying to find anything to aim at.

“This about your friend?”

He stiffened, hands dropping from their position with the gun.

“Yeah.”

He looked at you and you tilted your head slightly.

“Wanna go with him?”

“No,” He chuckled. “Not that I can, anyway. I’m stuck here.”

You pouted, “We that bad?”

“No! That’s not what I meant. It’s js that-” He sighed, repositioning himself with the gun. “He was my only friend. I know that we weren’t really friends, but he was the only decent person back in the capitol. Aside from my ma, I didn’t have anyone there. It’s just that, he was present in the life I pictured for myself here, and now he’s leavin’, makes me wonder if stayin’ here is right for me.”

Bang!

Bullseye.

“And don’t get me wrong, I love it here! I love…you.”

Bang!

Bullseye.

“My head’s js not right.” He sighed, dropping the gun back down. You stepped closer to him, placing a comforting hand on his shoulder.

“Can you buy your way back?”

“...Probably.”

“Then? What’s keepin’ you here?”

His eyes shot down to your lips momentarily. “Lotsa things.”

You giggled, “Then why the worry?”

You pressed your thumb into his forehead, smoothing the wrinkles there.

“You’ll figure it out Sejanus, we both will.” You began circling him teasingly. “Maybe folks will take you up on those dance lessons, maybe you’ll make it as a medic. Maybe we find us a nice house by the seam and you put those arms of yours to good work, build us a home. With your pay and my tips, we would be barely gettin’ by, but, who knows? Maybe at some point we’ll add a third, start a garden in our slice of land so we could keep up with the demand.”

He pulled you in, a dopey smile on his face. That life, those promises you were making, they meant the world to him. He’d always wanted to be the family man, especially some place where his kids wouldn’t have to suffer through the same childhood he did. And the way you said it all so sweetly, had he not already been committed to staying here, your words alone would’ve convinced him.

But then again,

“And our third? What if the hunger games is still goin’? If they get reaped?”

He could tell you were not taking him seriously by the way you feigned being deep in thought, before an idea seemingly struck you.

“Simple, we add a fourth!” You bit you siling lip as he shook his head. “You’re worryin’ about somethin’ that seems ages away!”

He took off the dog tag they gave him when he just got here, throwing it over your neck before pulling you in from it for another kiss. He sighed against you, all his troubles melting away at your taste.

“Okay, fine. Whatever you say, gorgeous.”

You packed your little picnic up, walking back to the house hand in hand.

“I wanted to send my ma a photo of us, is there a camera we could use?”

“I think we’ve got one in a closet somewhere, but it’s rickety and likely broken. You can check with the merchants if someone knows how to fix em’. Or we could get Barb Azure to paint us instead! She’s as good as a camera, hell, she’s even better!”

“Yeah, that sounds nice. ”

A comfortable silence came over you two once more as he replayed your conversation like a fool in love.

“I only want girls.” He said abruptly. “I don’t want to have a boy, I don’t wanna turn out like my father.”

“I love your enthusiasm, but you’re not getting either until I’ve got a ring to show for it.”

He laughed a little, stopping you by your hands and pulling you in.

“Yea, ma’am. On it.”

“Sejanus?”

“Yeah?”

“I love you.” You whispered into his skin, it set his soul on fire.

“I love you more.”

…

151 notes · View notes

ilguna · 2 years ago

Note

hii could you please write a young coriolanus x reader arranged marriage trope thank you

☼ plinth legacy pt1 (Coriolanus Snow) ☼

warnings; swearing, death mention, blood mention, some grief.

wc; 7.7k

notes; made the reader sejanus's sister for angst reasons :)

part two.

Coriolanus Snow.

A name, much less a person, you had never thought would constantly be on your mind. He wasn’t before. In fact, most days you wouldn’t glance his way twice, unless you had to. He was just another face at the Academy, a friend of your brother, Sejanus. Which, by association, made him a friend of yours. Or, at the very least, acquaintances.

It wasn’t that you didn’t like him, or that he was unbearable to have a conversation with. Actually, his presence was nice, on the occasions that you were around him for longer than a few minutes at a time. He was polite, and always seemed genuinely interested in what you had to say, even if he’d heard it all before from Sejanus.

You started to see more of Coriolanus when they became mentors for the tributes in the districts. You weren’t eligible to participate, and it wasn’t due to grades, but because you’re a year younger than your brother. This didn’t stop him from pulling you to see the tributes in the zoo when the opportunity first struck.

Ma had warned you two to be careful, after what she had seen happen with Coriolanus getting stuck inside. Still, she happily made the sandwiches when Sejanus requested it, and even made extra after he told her what his plan was. He wanted to give them to the tributes inside of the cage, he had a feeling they were hungry, and he was right.

Sejanus couldn’t get them to approach the bars, no matter what he said, or how hard he tried. A few times, you’d tried yourself, attention focused on one person in particular, who was on the far side of the cage, refusing to look your guys’ way.

Your fingers curled around the cold steel, leaning into it. “Marcus.” You breathed, a smile on your face. “Please, we want to help.” His eyes found you, standing above where Sejanus was crouched. “It’s just a sandwich.”

He didn’t budge, of course. Sejanus took a glance behind the two of you, getting to his feet. The sandwich lowering in one hand, as he waved someone over with the other. When you looked, you found Coriolanus coming through the crowd, blonde curls bouncing with each step.

When he caught your eye, he gave you a smile. “Trouble?”

“None of them trust us. And why should they?” Sejanus asked.

“Us?” Coriolanus echoed.

“I’ve been trying, too. But not as broadly.” You shook your head.

A girl had marched up next to the three of you to point to a sign on a pillar next to the enclosure. “It says, ‘Please don’t feed the animals.’”

“They’re not animals, though,” Sejanus told her. “They’re kids, like you and me.”

“They’re not like me! They’re district. That’s why they belong in a cage!” She shouted.

Sejanus sighed. “Once again, like me.” He then looked at Coriolanus. “Coriolanus, do you think you could get your tribute to come over? If she does, the others might. They have to be starving.”

He hesitated, looking through the bars to find his tribute. He took a moment to think, debate whether or not he should. All he needed was a little push to convince him, so you leaned forward, over Sejanus, to place a hand on his arm.

“Please?” The word was sweet, more than you had intended it to be. His eyes moved to you, instead. “Do you have any ideas?”

He took in a breath, “I can’t just treat her like it’s feeding time at the zoo,” He was shaking his head. “Not mine. But I could offer her dinner. Maybe they’ll join after that.”

Sejanus nodded, you removed your hand, giving him a smile. Your brother opened up the backpack for Coriolanus to see the amount of sandwiches and fresh plums that were inside, waiting. “Take whatever. Ma made extra. Please.”

Coriolanus took two sandwiches and two plums, and then moved away to a more private spot, where he sat down on a flat rock. His tribute went up to him to join, and they spoke briefly. She took a bite out of one of the sandwiches, a smile appearing on her face.

The other tributes had moved forward, seemingly gauging her reaction to make sure that it was good. When she swallowed her bite, she turned her head to them. “You all should get one. They’re real good!” She waved her district friend forward. “Go on, Jessup!”

Jessup took his time approaching the fence, black hair sticking to his forehead from the heat. Sejanus wordlessly handed him a sandwich, and a healthy plum. As soon as Jessup had returned to where he’d been before, the other tributes rushed forward.

You stole a sandwich and a plum, holding them to your chest, eyes on Marcus, as he refused to come forward. A dozen hands stuck themselves through the bars, and your brother struggled to fill them quickly. Within the minute, the food was gone, everyone had gotten one.

Except for Marcus.

He had his arms crossed over his chest, face hard. Sejanus pulled a sandwich out of the very bottom of the bag, unaware that the food you were holding was for Marcus, and not for yourself.

“Marcus, this is for you. Take it. Please.” Sejanus said, leaning out as far as he could. “Please, Marcus.” He pleaded. “You must be starving.”

You watched with a sinking heart as Marcus looked Sejanus up and down, and then turned his back to the both of you. One of the other, smaller, boy tributes took the opportunity and ran forward to claim the sandwich, snatching it from Sejanus’s hand.

The news crew showed up after that, pushing a camera into his face. Your brother wasn’t having it, slinging the empty backpack over his shoulder. He held his elbow out for you, so he could escort you through the crowd better.

“I’m going to talk to Marcus.” You told him. “I don’t want him to go hungry.”

“Ma will be upset that I left you here.” Sejanus said, “She told me to watch you.”

“You wouldn’t be leaving me. I have Coryo.” You motioned to Coriolanus, who was in his own world with his tribute. You cleared your throat, getting his attention. “Sejanus is going to leave, you wouldn’t mind keeping an eye on me, would you?”

Coriolanus nodded, smiling, “Of course not, why’d you even ask?”

Sejanus was satisfied, lowering his elbow. “I’ll see you at home.”

“Tell Ma I won’t be too late.” You said, watching him weave through the crowd to leave.

And then you turned back to the cage, eyes on Marcus in the corner. He was stiff, unmoving in the corner for another few long minutes. Which was probably done to ensure that you two had left.

When he decided that enough time had passed, he took his time turning around. The first place he looked was in your direction to confirm the coast was clear.

You were certain he was going to shut you out at the sight of you, but he didn’t. He stayed where he was, and so did you. You waited for him to relax, even if it was a little bit, before you bothered to hold up the sandwich and the plum you’d been holding to your chest. The food that you’d been protecting for him.

His face twisted, you stared, drawing in a breath. “Ma made it. I don’t want you to go hungry, Marcus.”

Marcus deliberated, eyes wandering from yours, and then he’d pushed himself off of the wall. You crouched, so that he wouldn’t have to come up the dry moat if he didn’t want to. He took his time, drawing attention to himself.

If he had any respect from the other tributes for abstaining, it had crumbled like his resolve.

Marcus stopped at the bottom of the moat, you held out the sandwich and the plum for him. “We’re so sorry you’re here, Marcus. We never could’ve imagined it’d come to this.” He didn’t move, watching you.

And then all of a sudden he did.

His hands closed around your wrists, yanking you forward. You barely turned your head in time to keep your nose from slamming into the bars, eyes wide, trying to pull back. He had a tight grip on you, squeezing hard enough for you to feel the blood beginning to build in your fingers.

“You aren’t.” He said, voice hard.

“Marcus…” You wiggled, “Marcus, you’re hurting me.”

He tried to pull you in closer, forcing you to press into the bars of the enclosure. “This is what you get, (Y/n). This is what happens when you treat people like animals.”

“But this isn’t my fault!” You shouted, panic settling in. “Let go of me!”

“You’re the one that moved to the Capitol. You didn’t stay in District Two. You’re just as bad as they are.”

“Let go!” You cried, tears in your eyes.

“Get off of her.” A hard voice demanded, a hand shot in front of you to make a grab at Marcus.

Coriolanus was angry, an emotion that you hadn’t seen him wear before. He was always so cool and collected, there wasn’t a lot that could get him riled up. If it did, he would excuse himself, to keep from tarnishing his perfect reputation.

A stern crease was between his eyebrows as he got his hand around one of Marcus’s forearms, bringing him forward with one solid pull.

“I said, get off of her.” His voice was low.

“Or what?” Marcus asked.

“Or I’ll make you wish you never met her.”

Marcus listened, never taking his eyes off of Coriolanus, as if he could jump through the narrow bars to strangle him. His hands released, and you let go of the sandwich and the plum in the process. You caught yourself on the bars before you could fall completely, standing up swiftly, brushing dust off your skirt.

Coriolanus reached for you, and you held onto the red sleeve of his Academy uniform, breathing heavily. You shook your head at Marcus, heart beating in your chest. “Just because we’re here now, doesn’t mean we’ve changed, unlike you.”

The evening was ruined, but the zoo was closing anyway. Coriolanus let you hang onto his elbow, as he began to lead you out while blocking the cameras from bombarding you. You didn’t make it very far before you saw Sejanus, sitting behind a boulder. And even though you could’ve let go of Coriolanus, you didn’t.

You were upset, for multiple reasons. Your intentions were completely different from what Marcus assumed. You weren’t there to save face with District Two, you were there to help him. And even worse, you were mad at Sejanus for dragging you along in the first place.

It was the last time you went to see Marcus with Sejanus, but it was the first time Coriolanus kept you up at night. It was the way he had stepped in, how he reached for you first, instead of waiting to see if you wanted his comfort. It stuck out in your mind, and then it didn’t.

When your mom saw the bruises on your wrists the following day, she told you that you were done. Sejanus would have to do the mentoring on his own. This doesn’t mean that you heard about it any less. You probably heard about it more, getting every detail without ever having to ask, because Sejanus offered it up.

You didn’t see Coriolanus for a few days after that, despite the fact that you wanted to thank him. You were too invested in schoolwork, while also trying to come up with ideas for Sejanus to use with Marcus, because he wanted to make things right between them.

When you did see him next, it was the day of Arachne Crane’s funeral. The whole school had gathered on the front steps of the Academy. The groups were divided neatly and alphabetically by class, but Coriolanus wasn’t. He was in the front row, sitting alongside important individuals, namely President Ravenstill.

You had no idea why, until the Academy clock struck nine, and the entire crowd fell silent. That’s when he rose from his seat and walked to the podium, where he sang the anthem. The president then gave a speech about Arachne, how her life didn’t deserve to be taken when all the Capitol is doing is striving for peace.

You bit your tongue, hard. If they wanted peace, they should treat those in the districts together. You’d heard about what happened to Arachne, what she did to her tribute. She was teasing a starving girl, and while you don’t agree that taking a life is the right form of payback, you can’t blame the tribute.

The funeral procession came around the corner, following the drumming. At first, it was all peacekeepers from the honor guard. The crane was next, attached to a flatbed. And dangling from the hook, with bullets in her dead body, was the district girl. Below, shackled to the truck bed, were the twenty-three other tributes, filthy with their heads down.

You were sick, struggling to breathe, as you imagined the amount of pain they had to be in. As you pictured yourself hanging from that hook, or chained to a truck that you couldn’t even stand on. The rest of the funeral was a blur, as the truck disappeared.

Still, you went to find Coriolanus, ignoring your own brother to do so. He was standing near the podium, talking to Dean Highbottom, but as soon as he left, you slid in.

“You sounded amazing.” You said, Coriolanus turned to you with raised eyebrows. When he saw your face, he gave you a smile. “I wish I sounded half as good.”

“I’m sure you do.” He said, hand on your shoulder. “I haven’t seen you in a couple of days, is everything okay?”

“Ma told me I’m not allowed to help anymore, she saw the bruises.” You said, “I’m fine, though.”

“He left bruises?” That crease between his eyebrows returned.

“He was mad. I would be too.” You muttered. “They got dumped into a zoo, literally. You were there. How did it feel?”

His face contorted, “Wrong, but that doesn’t excuse his behavior.”

“You’re right.” You sighed. “I never got to properly thank you for stepping in. I think he would’ve let go eventually, but—”

“You don’t need to thank me, (Y/n).” He interrupted, watching as you reached into your backpack.

“I do, actually.” You pulled out a neat plate of bread pudding that had been sitting flat on the bottom of your bag. When you looked up, you saw his parted lips. “You can’t ask how I know, but I heard that you really like bread pudding. I made enough for you and Tigris, or even if you wanted to share it with Lucy Gray.”

“You bake.” He said.

“On occasion. If you have any requests, I’ll be more than happy to make it for you.” You nodded.

He gave you a smile. “Thank you, (Y/n), but I don’t think I could ever ask that of you.”

“Please, don’t hesitate.” You told him. “I’ll see you around.”

You’d expected to see Coriolanus in the hallways next in passing, not the hospital later that evening. The mentors had gone to the arena with the tributes to do televised interviews, when rebels set off several bombs, killing multiple people. Both of the tributes from Six were killed, as well as the Ring twins—Diana and Apollo. While three mentors had been injured, that being Coriolanus, Androcles Anderson and Gauis Breen. The latter one lost both of his legs.

And of course, with the exit being wide open, four tributes went running for it. The tributes from One were dead before they stepped foot out the door, while the girl from Two had made it to the river. She made it over the wall, but died in the fall. While Marcus… he disappeared completely.

Sejanus was, thankfully, uninjured. The Academy canceled classes, so he came straight home. He didn’t really speak until the following day, when he suggested for the two of you to visit Coryo in the hospital. You’d agreed, because leaving your brother alone while he was that upset didn’t seem right.

Ma made more meat loaf sandwiches, because Coriolanus seemed to like them so much. When you visited him, he sat up in the hospital bed. Sejanus set Coryo’s book bag down on a table, while you took a seat. Together, the three of you enjoyed the sandwiches, while talking about anything but Marcus.

When you were done, you wished for him to get well soon. It would be the second time that he’d stay on your mind, this time lasting longer. You didn’t like that he was hurt, especially when he didn’t deserve to be. The war was between the districts and the government, not the people in-between that were being forced to help.

It didn’t seem to bother Coriolanus, though. He kept fighting for his tribute, and you tried to pry him from your mind. It was easier to do when the Games did finally come around, especially that first day. When the cameras started with a wide shot of the arena as a whole, and the fourteen tributes that stood in a circle around the center.

Then the camera changed, as it slowly zoomed in on twin steel poles, twenty feet high with a crossbeam. And at the center, Marcus hung from shackles at his wrists, beaten bloody, face swollen. When he moved his lips, it showed his broken teeth.

You raised to your feet the same time that Sejanus had. He was standing a few feet in front of you, next to Coriolanus, who was watching him carefully. The only reason why you were allowed to be in the hall was because you were there to support your brother, and you quickly understood why.

Sejanus rushed forward, grabbed an empty chair, and hurled it at the screen, where Marcus’s mangled face was. “Monsters!” He screamed. “You’re all monsters here!”

You watched in silence as he left the hall, leaving you there. No one had moved after him, and you were too stunned for a minute to chase after him. Coriolanus turned in his chair, where he saw you grabbing at your wrists, where the bruises were just healing.

“(Y/n)--” He was worried, shaking his head.

“He’s right.” You breathed, backing up toward the door. “What have we done?”

“Miss Plinth,” A hand had grabbed you.

You jerked away, eyes wild, lips parted. It was Dean Highbottom, and there was a warning on his face, telling you not to cause a scene. You didn’t want to be like your brother. Except, it was too late for him to step in, because the two of you were already too similar. Born from the same tree branch that split into two.

“Get away from me.” The words were harsh, “Don’t touch me.”

He let you go, as you followed after Sejanus. He wasn’t too far, just down the hall, where he was heaving heavy breaths, hands in fists at his sides. The look he gave you could’ve killed anyone, but his expression softened when he realized it was you.

You hugged him, standing there for what felt like forever. Marcus ended up dying later that afternoon by another tribute, presumably a mercy killing. Sejanus encouraged you to go home, telling you that he’d be right behind you in a few hours. You listened, told Ma that Sejanus was upset and that was it.

Well, that’s what you thought, at least. He didn’t come home that night, and as it got later, Ma was getting more worried. She asked you if you had any ideas where he could’ve gone, and you told her no. All you could do was suggest Coriolanus, because they were close, and Coryo seemed to care.

Ma took you to the Snow penthouse, where Tigris opened the door, dressed in a nice lavender dress. With Ma in hysterics, you explained the situation, and she invited you inside to sit in the living room. Tigris made tea, while her grandmother took a seat in a chair nearby. On the television was the arena, but it was too dark to see anything, even with the moonlight.

Tigris poured jasmine tea into cups on the table, while your mom tried to clean herself up with the handkerchief. “You’re such nice people. I’m so sorry to have dropped in on you like this.”

“Any friend of Coriolanus is a friend of us all.” His grandmother said. “Plinch, did you say?”

Your eyebrows twitched, Ma didn’t skip a beat. “Plinth. It’s Plinth.”

“You know, Grandm’am, she sent the lovely casserole when Coriolanus was injured.” Tigris said to remind her.

“I’m sorry. It’s too late.” Ma sniffed.

“Please don’t apologize. You did exactly the right thing.” Tigris patted her shoulder, looking up. Her eyebrows raised suddenly. “Oh, here’s my cousin now! Perhaps he knows something.”

You turned, finding Coriolanus gently shutting the door behind him. He gave you a gentle smile, but when you didn’t reciprocate, it dropped slightly. “Mrs. Plinth, (Y/n), what an unexpected pleasure. Is everything all right?” He asked, coming closer.

“Oh, Coriolanus. It isn’t. Not at all. Sejanus hasn’t come home. (Y/n) said he left the Academy this morning, and I haven’t seen him since. I’m so worried." She said. “Where can he be? I know Marcus being like that hit him—” She placed a hand on your knee, hand squeezing. “Them hard. Do you know? Do you know where he could be?”

“He was upset, ma’am. BUt I don’t know that it’s any cause for worry. He probably just needed to blow off some steam. Took a long walk or something. I’d do the same thing myself.” He tried to ease her.

“But it’s so late. It isn’t like him to up and disappear, not without letting his ma know.”

“Is there anywhere you can think of he might go? Or somebody he might visit?” Tigris asked.

Ma shook her head. “No. No. Your cousin’s his only friend.”

Coriolanus looked at you, where you hand your palms on your lap. “You know, if he’d wanted company, I think he’d have come to me first. You can see how he might have needed some time alone to… to make sense of all this. I’m sure he’s all right. Otherwise you’d have heard of it.”

“Did you check with the Peacekeepers?” Tigris asked.

Ma nodded. “No sign of him.”

“You see?” Coriolanus asked. “There’s been no trouble. Maybe he’s even home by now.”

“Perhaps you should go and check.” Their grandmother suggested.

Tigris gave her a look. “Or you could just call.”

Ma shook her head. “No. Your grandma’s right. Home is the place we should be. And I should let you all get to bed.”

“Coriolanus will walk you.” Tigris said.

“Of course.” Coriolanus nodded, you got to your feet.

“My car’s waiting down the block.” Ma told them, getting up as well. She smoothed down her hair. “Thank you. You’ve all been so kind. Thank you.” She reached back to grab her handbag, you looked away from Coriolanus to the television, where you stopped.

There, on the screen, a shadowy figure came out the barricade. The moonlight catering the side of his face, the features eerily familiar. He was carrying something in his hands, as he crossed the arena to Marcus’s corpse, where he stopped. Above laid a sleeping girl, the tribute that had killed your friend to keep him from suffering.

“Shall I walk you to your car?” Coriolanus asked, Ma had begun toward him. “I bet you’ll find Sejanus in bed.”

“No.” The word was a whisper out of your mouth. “No, Coryo.” He’d turned his attention to you, mouth opening to speak, when you did it first. “Sejanus is in there.”

Coriolanus came closer, passing Ma. You reached out to grab him, hand on his shoulder. Sejanus knelt down, and tried his best to arrange Marcus in an appropriate manner. He rolled Marcus on his back, straightened his legs and tried to fold his arms over his chest. And then he stood up and held his hand out over Marcus’s body.

You couldn’t help the tears that sprung into your eyes.

“That’s your son in there? What’s he doing?” Asked their grandmother.

“He’s putting bread crumbs on the body.” You murmured, lips trembling. “So Marcus has food on his journey.”

“His journey where? He’s dead!”

“Back to wherever he came from.” Ma told them. “It’s what we do, back home. When someone dies.”

You swallowed thickly, a tear running down your face. A handkerchief materialized out of Coriolanus’s pocket, he passed it to you. “Thank you, Coryo.”

The phone rang a moment later. “Is the whole city up?” Their grandmother sighed.

“Excuse me.” Coriolanus said, holding your gaze for a moment, as he walked away. He turned his body away to speak.

You wiped your eyes with the handkerchief, and then folded it neatly to place back on the coffee table. You needed to leave, to go to Sejanus. Why hadn’t he mentioned this to you? Was it because he knew it was a stupid idea?

When Coriolanus came away from the phone, he sighed. “That was the Head Gamemaker. She’d like you to meet her at the arena to collect Sejanus, and I’m to accompany the both of you.”

“Is he in trouble?” Ma asked, eyes wide. “With the Capitol?”

“Oh, no. They’re just concerned with his well-being. Shouldn’t be long, but don’t wait up.” He told his family.

The three of you shuffled out of the apartment after that, going down the elevator and through the lobby. Your parents’ car rolled up silently, and the three of you got inside, with Coriolanus requesting the arena. The Avox nodded, nad began to drive down the streets in a hurry.

“First time we saw the Capitol, it was night, like this.” Ma spoke quietly.

“Oh, yes?” Coriolanus asked, looking at you.

“Sejanus sat right where you are, saying, ‘It’ll be all right, Ma. It’ll be okay.’ Trying to calm me down. When we all knew it was a disaster,” Ma looked out the window. “But he was so brave. So good. Only thinking of his ma.”

“Hm. Must have been a big change.” Coriolanus said.

“Family and friends cut us off.” You told him, adjusting in your seat.

“No new ones to be made here. Strabo—their pa, that is—still thinks it was the right thing to do. No kind of future in Two. His way of protecting us. His way of keeping Sejanus and (Y/n) from the Games.”

“Ironic, really. Given the circumstances.” Coriolanus said. “Now, I don’t know what Dr. Gaul has in mind, but I imagine she wants your help getting him out of there.”

“I don’t know if I can. Him so upset and all. I can try, but he’ll have to think it’s the right thing to do.” She said, glancing at you. “I can’t let you go inside. You two have always been close, but I don’t want you in there.”

“I don’t want her to go inside, either.” Coriolanus chimed in. “Maybe there will be a different way.”

When you got to the arena, there were people already waiting outside of the doors. A dozen Peacekeepers, a good handful of Gamemakers, including Dr. Gaul. You approached tentatively, unsure about her presence. She didn’t always come off stable, that’s why you tried to keep your distance.

Coriolanus noticed this, choosing to stand between you two.

“At least you’re punctual.” Dr. Gaul said. “Mrs. Plinth, I presume? And little (Y/n).”

You pressed your lips together. Ma nodded, “Yes, yes. I’m sorry if Sejanus has caused any inconvenience. He’s a good boy, really, It’s just he takes things so to heart.”

“No one could accuse him of being indifferent.” She agreed, looking at Coriolanus. “Any idea how we might rescue your best friend, Mr. Snow?”

“What’s he doing?” Coriolanus asked, ignoring the comment.

“Just kneeling there, looks like.” Dean Highbottom said, eyeing you. “Possibly in some kind of shock.”

“He appears calm. Perhaps you could send the Peacekeepers in now without startling him?” Coriolanus suggested.

“Too risky.” Dr. Gaul shot it down.

“What about putting his mother on a speaker, or a bullhorn?” He asked. “If you can darken the screen, surely you can manipulate the audio as well.”

“On the broadcast. But in the arena, we’d alert every tribute to the fact that there’s an unarmed Capitol boy in their midst.” Dean Highbottom said.

Coriolanus didn’t speak for a second. “What do you propose?”

“We think someone he knows needs to slip in as unobtrusively as possible and coax him out.” Dr. Gaul looked directly at you. “Namely, her.”

“No.” Coriolanus said immediately, shaking his head so hard that his blonde curls started to bounce. “She can’t go in there. I will.”

“Oh, no!” Ma cried. “It can’t be Coriolanus. The last thing we need is to put another child in danger. I’ll do it.”

“What we need is someone who can make a run for it, if necessary. If your daughter won’t, then Mr. Snow is the man for the job.” Dr. Gaul motioned to the Peacekeepers, who came over at her motion to dress him in body armor. “This vest should protect your vital organs. Here’s your pepper spray and a flash unit that will temporarily blind your enemies, should you make any.”

Coriolanus looked down at the bottle of pepper spray. “What about a gun? Or at least a knife?”

“Since you’re not trained, this seems safer. Remember, you’re not in there to do damage; you’re in there to bring your friend out as quickly and quietly as possible.” Dr. Gaul told him.

You started to shake your head, “Coryo, I can’t ask you to do this.”

“You aren’t asking.” He looked at you. “I’m volunteering.”

“He’s just a boy. Let me call my husband.” Ma begged.

Dean Highbottom gave Coriolanus a small smile. “He’ll be all right. It takes a lot to kill a Snow.”

You watched as Coriolanus’s face dropped, he sighed. And then he looked at you. “I’ll bring Sejanus out. Don’t worry.”

“Be careful.” You told him.

The Peacekeepers took him to the arena, where he disappeared inside. Your attention shifted to the news truck with the live feed of the tributes. It was dark though, too dark. You could barely make out anything, meaning you might as well had not been looking at all.

You were able to make out their figures, as Coriolanus slowly approached Sejanus to not scare him. They stood there, the minutes dragging on for what felt like forever, until they finally made the movement to leave, but not without Marcus’s body. They picked it up, made it a good deal across the arena before the other tributes came up to them. Less than a minute later, they came out.

And you were there in an instant, because you refused to leave without seeing either of the boys, while Ma went home. You had to push past the Peacekeepers to see Coriolanus and Sejanus, sitting on the tile. You crouched in front of them, hands on your knees.

“That was stupid of you, Sejanus.” You told your brother, looking at the blood pooling on the ground. “But you did what I couldn’t do.”

And then you looked at Coriolanus, who had his eyes on you already. You could see the scrapes on his face, his chin mostly, and the blood on his forehead. You reached out, he winced, but let you touch the area around the wounds.

“Thank you, Coryo.” You whispered.

His eyebrows furrowed. “Of course, (Y/n).”

From then on, seeing Coriolanus for longer than a few minutes at a time was rare. You looked forward to it each time. You saw him when Sejanus announced the Plinth prize, the sparkle in his eye at the mention of it.

He stopped by a couple days later, after Sejanus had gone to bed and Ma was cooking in the kitchen. You think he wanted to talk to Sejanus, possibly about the whole ordeal in the arena, but he had taken his sleeping medication. With the dosage he was on, there was no waking him.

You were sitting at the kitchen counter, swiveling side to side on the stool, talking to Ma as she baked her pies. You were about to go to bed, dressed in your pajamas, the only reason why you hadn’t was because you were waiting for her to put the peach pie in the oven first. At the sight of Coriolanus, the cuts on his face, and the smile on his lips, you’d clammed up.

“I was just heading off to bed.” You said to him, sliding from the chair.

“Are you sure you don’t want to stay for a piece of pie, (Y/n)?” Ma asked you, worry on her face.

“I’ll have a piece tomorrow.” You told her. “Besides, I think Coryo will have a piece big enough for the both of us, isn’t that right?” You smiled.

He nodded. “Sure.”

“Goodnight.” You murmured, pausing long enough to let Ma kiss your forehead. You waved to Coriolanus, and then disappeared around the corner, where curiosity stopped you.

Except, what they talked about while he enjoyed the blackberry pie wasn’t important, just about Sejanus and how the university would be better when he graduated. The real talk came after, when Pa wanted to see him. And Coriolanus went inside, closing the door behind him, which you then pressed your ear to.

“You look just like your father.”

“I hear that a lot,” Coriolanus said. “Did you know him?”

“Our business overlapped at times.” Pa said. “It’s striking, the resemblance. But you’re nothing like him, really.” He paused for a moment. “Nothing at all. Or you’d never have gone into that arena after my son. Impossible to imagine Crassus Snow risking his life for me. I keep asking myself why you did it.”

“I couldn’t let (Y/n) go inside. And he’s my friend.”

“No matter how many times I hear that, it’s difficult to believe. But even from the beginning, Sejanus singled you out. Maybe you take after your mother, huh? She was always gracious to me when I came here on business before the war. Despite my background. The very definition of a lady. Never forget it.” Pa said, there was another pause. “Are you like your mother?”

Coriolanus didn’t speak right away. “I’d like to think I am, in some respects.”

“In what respects?”

“Well, we shared a fondness for music.”

“Music, huh?”

“And I do think we both believed that good fortune was… something to be repaid… on a daily basis. Not taken for granted.” Coriolanus said.

“I’d agree with that.”

“Oh, good. Yes, well, so… Sejanus.”

“Sejanus. Thank you, by the way, for saving his life.”

“No thanks necessary. As I said, he’s my friend.”

“And (Y/n), is she your friend too?” Pa asked.

“Yes, she is.”

“She tells me that you’ve done a lot for her lately.” Pa said slowly. “You helped her at the zoo?”

“That was nothing.”

“I wouldn’t consider it so. She could’ve gotten seriously hurt if you hadn’t stepped in. You saw the bruises.” He said. “You’ve checked up with her since. And volunteered to keep her safe when Dr. Gaul suggested that she should go inside of the arena.”

“Well—”

“Coriolanus, in District Two, there are traditions we have for families like ours.” Pa said, your eyebrows drew together. “Wealthy families, I mean. I’m not sure if the Capitol has the same beliefs.”

“I’m sorry, I’m not following.” Coriolanus said.

“Arranged marriage.”

You felt your blood run cold, but at the same time, the heat flamed in your face, licking your cheeks. You pulled your ear away for a second, thinking that you shouldn’t be listening in on this conversation.

“I’ve heard of families coming together in the Capitol, but it’s not very common.”

“It’s for more than just wealth, it’s to combine names as well.” Pa told him. “Snow is a grand name, don’t you think?”

“As is Plinth.” Coriolanus agreed.

“So, you understand what I’m implying then? What would your grandmother think?”

“I think that she wouldn’t agree to doing it so soon.”

“Of course not, it would happen after graduation, before university.” Pa said, “Will you give me your home phone? I’d like to discuss this with your grandmother.”

After that point, seeing Coriolanus would be painful… except, you didn’t see him the following day. In fact, you didn’t see him again at all. The next time his name was brought up in your house was with Sejanus’s, which was tied in with the words District Twelve and Peacekeepers.

“What?” You asked, coming around the hallway corner. Ma’s eyes widened. “Sejanus is where?”

“Oh, darling, you weren’t supposed to hear that. We wanted to tell you tonight.”

You shook your head. “Sejanus and Coryo went to District Twelve? Why?”

“I believe Coriolanus Snow signed himself up.” Pa told you. “As for Sejanus, it was the best we could do. He won’t be there long.”

“And what about Coriolanus?”

Pa made a face, tilted his head, “Twenty years, is what I was hearing.”

Your mouth dropped open, a reaction that you couldn’t stop in time. “Is that the same for Sejanus?”

“Yes.”

The only option you were given to keep in touch was letters. You could write to either of them whenever you wanted. Ma even told you that she was going to pack them food to send, stuff that they’d never be able to get in the districts, let alone Twelve.

With it being summer, you had plenty of time on your hands to write, but every time you picked up the pencil, the words escaped you. Everything that you’d been bottling to save for Sejanus seemed meaningless. So, you mostly replied to what Sejanus said, which could be a lot. He carried the conversations mostly, and you told him that you missed him. And you’d continue to miss him until he finally came back.

Which would never happen, not that you knew that at the time. It was a quiet day when the news reached your parents about what happened. That your brother had got caught up in rebel activities, which was treason. He was hanged without a trial, without a single letter sent home. For once, your family’s money couldn’t buy his way out of this one.

A black hole appeared in your chest, sucking in everyone’s words, their emotions. Ma couldn’t help you, even though she tried. She spent more time with you, trying to get you to speak, but all you wanted was to forget. Or to go back in time and tell Sejanus he needed to stop, that his actions would cost him his life.

Sejanus.

The boy you grew up with, the one you trusted with every secret, the one that kept you safe. Who you’d play with as a child when no one else would, who would help you with your homework when you fell behind. His sweetness, his hopefulness, his personality. He’s gone. He’s gone and you never got to say goodbye.

All you gave him was half-assed letters. If you’d known that it would be the last time you talked to him, you would’ve done more. You would’ve said so much more.

It was like almost every piece of him was gone, until the next wave of news came. While Sejanus would never get to leave District Twelve, Coriolanus had been honorably discharged. He was coming home to the Capitol. And with it being weeks after Sejanus’s death, it opened up a conversation that you thought was done for good.

The Snow’s were falling. You’d heard the news about Tigris and their grandmother almost immediately after Coriolanus had left. They had to sell their apartment, the nice penthouse you went to visit once. They couldn’t afford to keep it, so they downgraded, but the apartment lay empty.

Pa had decided that it was time to revisit the topic of an arranged marriage when he heard that Coriolanus was coming back. Ma really liked Coryo, because he was such a good friend to Sejanus. With your brother being gone, their attention had shifted a little, split between you and Coryo. Why keep it that way when there was a solution?

His grandmother agreed to it. It took a little bit of convincing, but at the mention of Pa buying the penthouse back as a gift, it made her cave. A letter was promptly sent to Coriolanus, who wasn’t to leave Twelve for another few days while they settled his paperwork.

And his reply? ‘It would be my pleasure.’

As you straighten out the dress again, you look at the time on the clock that the train station has on display. Coriolanus should be arriving at any minute. It was requested that he were to be picked up by a Peacekeeper truck to take him to the Citadel, but Pa pulled strings, as he always does. He wanted your face to be the first thing that Coriolanus saw when he stepped off.

You didn’t agree to this. You wanted to put this off for as long as possible. Sejanus chose to go to District Twelve to follow Coriolanus. They were close. He was the last one to have a conversation with your brother when he was alive. Besides, you’re set to marry him in a few short weeks. His suit measurements take place in two days.

A horn sounds, you look up from your polished shoes, the one scuf you managed to get this morning on the walk here. It was too late to turn around and change the shoes. Besides, they’re the only pair that matches this dress. A whole new outfit bought for Coriolanus, and he won’t even realize it.

The train pulls in the station, blowing cool air into your face. You take in a deep breath, trying to correct your posture. This will be the first time you’ve seen Coriolanus in months. Does he even know that you’re here to greet him?

It doesn’t matter. Once the doors open, you take a few steps toward them, trying to be casual. It’s hard to, with the hammering in your chest. You press your lips together, regripping the handbag, coming to a stop in front of the doors. The first few people that file out look like regular Capitol workers.

You’re too busy looking for Coriolanus’s blonde curls, that you almost miss him stepping out of the doors. His eyes flicker up for a moment, likely to collect his bearings, glancing over you.

You must register in his mind the next second, because he looks directly at you again, stepping off the train. You swallow, eyes stuck on his hair. Or rather, the lack of it. His head’s been shaved.

“(Y/n).” He smiles, “I wish I would’ve known you’d be here, I would’ve had something for you.”

“Your curls…” You murmur, face beginning to contort. If they got rid of his hair when he was enlisted, was the same done to Sejanus?

Coriolanus closes the distance between the two of you, pulling you into a tight hug. You press your forehead to his chest, hands gripping the clothes he’s wearing as you fight off the tears that threaten you. You don’t want to cry, you’ve spent so much of your time doing exactly that. For once, you want to be in control.

“I’m so sorry, (Y/n).” He says, “I can’t imagine how difficult it’s been.”

“I miss him.” The words are strained, you pull your head back, looking at Coriolanus. “I wish he would’ve told me what he was planning.”

“He’d never put you in danger.”

“I know.” You back away from the hug. Coriolanus holds out his elbow for you to take, you begin to lead him to the car. “I trust you’ve learned a lot these past few months. Did you get to see Lucy Gray, at least?”

His face smooths out, this was not the right question to ask. He lets out a sigh, shaking his head. “I did, but her lifestyle is much different from mine.”

You nod. “You’re not district.”

“I’m not covey.” He corrects, a smile hinting at the corners of his lips.

“Oh, so she had you singing?”

“I wouldn’t say that.” He looks away, at someone passing by.

It’s quiet between the two of you for a moment. There was so much you wanted to say to him, but much like the letters to your brother, the words have left you. You chew on the inside of your cheek.

“You have something on your mind.” Coriolanus says, it’s not a question.

You sniff. “It’s um… It’s about Sejanus, just one thing I have to know before I can stop thinking about him.”

“He wouldn’t want you to do that.”

“It’s to put my mind at ease.” You stop outside of the car. “I know it’s not your tradition, Coriolanus, but were you able to…”

He nods. “I was.”

You meet his eyes. “The bread crumbs? They let you see his body?”

“He has food on his journey.” He tells you.

You breathe out a sigh. “Oh, good. Ma will be happy to hear that.”

Neither of you move for the car door, standing there, staring at each other. He eventually starts to shake his head. “(Y/n), I won’t do anything you don’t want me to.”

“It’s too late for that.” You tell him. “We can talk about it more later on, in a few days.”

Coriolanus reaches for the car door, motioning for you to go inside first. “I’ll be here when you’re ready.”

You don’t move to get inside. “Thank you for being such a good friend to my brother.”

He tilts his head. “You don’t have to thank me.”

“You’re the only piece of him I have left.” You shift on your feet, “I have to thank you.”

this was part of my 3k celebration!!

965 notes · View notes

targaryenluvs · 2 years ago

Note

ooh what about coryo x a plinth!reader, like sejanus’s younger sister who’s friendly but cautious. and though she accepts coryo into the family (since he was her brother’s “friend”) the way he just took his place begins to unsettle her until she finds out what happened but by then it’s too late and she can’t get rid of him

RUNAWAY

pairings: dark!coriolanus snow x fem!plinth!reader

summary: you’d always considered coriolanus to be a friend of yours. family even. but after sejanus’s death you find him to be off. he’s keeping something from your family and you’ve run out of time to get as far away as you can.

warnings: mentioned murder/hanging, nc kissing, secrets, manipulation, lying, possessive, blackmail, forced marriage, implied sex

a/n: thank u for the requestsss!! i’ve had no inspo lately so thank y’all

he looked so different.

well not so, but to anyone else it was just a change of clothes and a hairstyle. but he truly had changed, in personality and looks. his face rarely smiled anymore, it being reserved for a small group.

what you didn’t know was that the group was just you.

your family has been quick to welcome him, sejanus’s loyal best friend. the one who’d been by his side, when it happened and before it. who helped him in the academy and as peacekeepers. you liked coriolanus a lot back then, he was always nice to you. bringing you a rose or a treat he’d managed to charm a naive baker into passing his way free of charge. you’d always seen him as a brother, his presents being an affectionate way of showing his liking of you. sejanus’s little sister. you were happy for sejanus, as most of the kids weren’t exactly welcoming. having an acquaintance, friend even, was good for him.

but if you’d known he had other intentions in mind for these years you would have ran for the hills.

coriolanus was on the fast track for success.

with the plinth fortune at his back he was for once providing what he wanted to for his family. presidency in the horizon, respect by his side and lucy gray in the past.

but there was something he wanted from the plinth family, even if he’d already taken their fortune and son. their daughter. before now, he was meek. he may have held himself high, fooled some and scared others with his smart self he’d never managed to get the one thing he wanted, you. but there was no way you could deny him now, right?

you didn’t know how it had happened but you weren’t miserable. you knew you’d have to marry one day so why not coriolanus? you thought to yourself as you fixed your wedding dress, you’d asked for time alone before you walked since- well you didn’t know why. you just wanted a second to breathe before the entire capitol came down on you with a million questions, pokes and prods.

you were in corio and yourselfs room. as you surveyed the room one last time as an unmarried woman you noticed something peeking out from his bed. you knew coriolanus liked to write, but you assumed it was all business related. god you wish your curiosity had kept itself in check.

your dress was wet in places. the tears were non-stop and you couldn’t breathe. just when you thought the tears and heavy breathing would die down you felt coriolanus’s hand on your bare shoulder, “you should have not read it.” his voice was stern, unwavering. you wanted nothing more than to kill him. “don’t be hysterical. get up. he’s gone and there is nothing you can do about it. i won’t allow you to ruin my image, get up.” you continued crying as he lifted you up, manoeuvring you like a doll. moulded for him.

he wiped away your tears as you buried your face in his neck and your nails in his biceps. you were holding on to him for dear life, you feared if he wasn’t there to ground you the floor would eat you.

“settle down, we have a wedding to finish.” you choked on god knows what, “do you honestly believe i’d marry you now? no! i’m telling everyone. and they’ll see what a disgusting monster you are. how dare you come to our family for reprieve and safety! use our money! stay in our home and smile at us knowing what you did?” you screamed as you ran towards the door, being met with a guard. he was large, burly and did not look like he cared about you. the tears down your face and he held no sympathy. “i pay him handsomely. he won’t help you, no one here will.” coriolanus walked over to the door and shut it as you walked backwards.

you had no clue what he would do to you, if he could have sejanus hung and then face his family everyday. charm you, love you, sleep with you and now marry?

“would you like to tell your mother? that someone she considers to be a son took her child from her? would she even believe you? or would she die of heartbreak before you could explain? what happens when i prove your lying? no one knows besides you and me. your word vs mine. a powerful business man, game maker of the hunger games, from old money and wealth. coriolanus snow, soon to be president and his dear wife. y/n plinth, a daughter of the plinths, new money with no history in the capitol and whom made money of off the war whilst others suffered. even if they did believe you, who would stop me from making sure they see their son again?”

checkmate.

you had no where to run to and your family on the line, so when coriolanus walked to you, fixed your hair and dress, you let him.

when your father walked you down the isle to the monster who destroyed your family, you let him.

when your mother cried tears of happiness for her daughters marriage, you let her.

when coriolanus kissed you passionately, hand dropping quite low as the crowd cheered for your love. you let them.

and when he carried you to your new bedroom, ripped your dress off and made his way down, you let him.

because you knew there was no way you’d allow him to touch your parents, hurt them. maybe they could get away from his poisoned thorns that dug so deeply. by the end of the night you’d been taken in so many ways you couldn’t move without irritating a bruise. and with coriolanus’s arm trapping you in his chest only one thought blared through your mind.

RUNAWAY!

#coriolanus snow x fem!reader #coriolanus snow x reader #dark!coriolanus snow x reader #coriolanus x reader #coriolanus snow #hunger games x reader #coriolanus snow x plinth!reader

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artificialroux · 4 months ago

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͡ ݂ ⊹ 𝐀𝐍𝐍𝐄𝐓𝐓 𝐃𝐀𝐖𝐍 𝐌𝐀𝐑𝐑𝐎𝐖, 𝐂𝐎𝐕𝐄𝐘

౨ৎ annett dawn marrow is the substitute accordionist for the covey's band in district 12, though she takes over fully for billy taupe later on. she is named after a ballad originating years before in ireland. her parents were executed by peacekeepers for rebelling against moving the covey, she doesn't remember them, but she does remember her father teaching her how to use a rifle, which she still carries to this day, illegally.

౨ৎ the name dawn, comes from her fiery locks of wild hair, which resemble the orange sky at sunrise. she is fierce, unadulterated, and protective of the younger members of the covey, since she serves as one of the oldest and almost a guardian of sorts for them. she sews their clothes and takes care of most of the chores, ie. laundry.

౨ৎ annet dawn has caused a few issues with peacekeepers in the past, a few fights one might say during rough bar nights. though, because the covey provide entertainment, most don't end up complaining when a woman beats them up. maude ivory likes to joke that she's like a corn snake, since only lucy gray seems to be able to calm her when she gets her temper going, along with the red hair.

౨ৎ she forms a connection with sejanus plinth when he comes to 12. originally, she distrusts both him and coriolanus, attributing this to the fact they are both peacekeepers and not trustworthy. though once she learns of sejanus's previous district origins, and heavy dislike of the games, she realizes he is able to be trusted.

౨ৎ her ballad goes as follows ;

“in dunlin glen where willows weep, a maiden sang her love to sleep. they called her annet, soft and fair, with foxfire eyes and copper hair. he vowed he'd come when spring was near— but seasons passed, he stayed unclear. she climbed the cliffs in gown of white and vanished with the fading light. now when the dusk is cold and stark, the wind still calls for annet lark.”

౨ৎ tags ; @dippindotties @logansdogmotif @chshiresgrin @glxsyymads

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mockingkatniss · 1 year ago

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NEED A RIDE? - drug dealer!Coriolanus Snow

18+ | nswf | mdni

warnings and tags: swearing, mention of drug dealing, smut, sloppy making out, multiple orgasms, blowjob, mention of gagging, body fluids, use of words like “wh0re” or “slu7”, specific body descriptions. BUZZCUT CORYO (little bit of a jump-scare for some of y’all) MODERN!AU, p in v sex, reader is just soft but not innocent, intese sex, porn without plot. (If I missed anything lmk).

(not proof read because I was tired, I will fix eventual errors <3)

summary: one particularly hot summer evening coryo sees you riding your bike while he’s driving he’s car around mindlessly and he ask you if you need a ride.

words count: 3.109k

Wanted to thank so so much @swiftiekisses because the drug dealer!coryo au it’s hers but she inspired me a lot and I also love so much her writing that I wanted to contribute with this fic! Also a big thanks to @euphemiaamillais because I’m literally addicted to what she writes and for inspirations for the drug dealer! au too! <3

enjoy and support me with a comment or a tiny heart! 💗🎀

coriolanus was driving by the quiet and deserted road of his god forsaken forgotten little town.

he hoped almost every morning to just wake up and found his rotten little city was torn down by some natural catastrophe.

he thought that dreams or ambitions couldn’t come true here. since his family lost everything due to his father's poor life choices, he was now stuck with poverty at 18 years and a cousin and grandmother to look after. more correctly just grandmother, since tigris left for college just the year prior.

to round some money he worked at the gas station, a literal hell hole in summer and plus coryo was sure he left part of his soul here, and sold some drugs to younger kids or kids his age at school or at parties but most of the times they directly came to the gas station.

if a drug had a name it was mostly probable that coryo had it to sell

that summer was cruel, sweat sticking to clothes and the asphalt so hot it could melt shoe soles, so cruel that coryo decided just two days ago to buzz his beautiful platinum curls off. the super short hair gave him a totally new appearance, he noticed that at the last party he went to sell, that mostly girls bought from him, stucking dollar bills inside his front jeans pocket and sometimes begging for a kiss or some good old make out. he accomplished and accepted that he was just extremely hot.

his car moaned underneath him as he drove, that old piece of garbage was still going on but coryo feared that someday he would be left walking.

it was 7:35 pm, his shift at the gas station over since sejanus plinth took his place for the night shift. sejanus was a nice kid, he was rich but decided to take another path just having shitty jobs during the summer like most teens even though for him it wasn't necessary having one. he didn’t sell drugs but he covered coryo so many times at school or at work so he was ok.

coryo had a small joint hanging from his lips as he drove, just one hand on the steering wheel and both the car’s windows opened since his ac was (obviously) broken, but even the air was heavy and warm that night.

miraculously the bluetooth radio was still working so he was listening to some trap rap music on his cracked up phone, the screen broken from everytime he made it fall while running away from cops or simply on the floor on a daily basis. as the music went on he thought about how the suggestion to listen to that genre of music came from clemensia e arachne at school, but it was nice for once not only listening to metal or punk rock.

while he took another hit from his joint something caught his eye on the road. it was a bike, someone was riding it and he probably knew who it could be.

the bike was faded pink with old stickers on it and you were riding it tiredly, legs sore and sweat sticking to your skin.

your tiny tight skirt was riding up a little showing some more of your thighs and coryo swore to god that he saw a glimpse of your pink panties.

sometimes you bought from him some weed and nothing more. you were a literal sunshine and at school you talked to everyone, being friendly and helpful. coryo still remembers how you helped him with physics the first year of highschool. you both were still young but nature obviously blessed you donating you such a sexy body.

he instantly felt his cock gently twitch into his jeans and he made the smoke from the joint exiting his nostrils in annoyance. don’t you get coryo wrong, he had sex and sure plenty of it but since the hot sticky summer he wasn’t feeling like it to just screw some girl even though he just needed to say the words. it was peculiar how his cock woke up just by seeing you.

he drove nearby you slowly to keep up with your velocity and you looked over to acknowledge the presence of a car and as you recognized the driver you smiled throughout puffed breaths from hotness and the riding.

coryo made a small smirk while pulling the joint away from his lips to talk. “hey bunny, need a ride?”. you slowly stopped your bike, tippy toes of your pink vans scratching on the asphalt. coryo stopped the car too and since the streets were dead he just got off his vehicle to look at you while positioning the almost finished joint on the car roof.

you panted lightly as you talked as you examined his presence. “it would be so nice coryo, I think I’m about to faint because of the heat”. he nodded understandingly with his head to the car behind him. “get on, I’ll get the bike” coryo thought he was going crazy when you got off the bike seat revealing more of your thighs. you collected your backpack and lifted yourself up on your tippy toes to kiss his cheek, strawberry lip gloss scent evident on his skin too now. “thank you coryo you’re my savior” you said before going to the opposite back of the car.

once the bike was fixed in the back he turned the car back on, securing his joint back around his lips once again while grabbing his lighter inside his jeans front pocket.

“where am I taking you?” he asked while lighting the joint to take a long drag before passing it to you. “I’m going to my dads house, it’s near the football field, 32nd house” you explained as coryo nodded knowing where it was since he spent much more time driving around in his free time than anything else. you also accepted the joint starting to smoke with relaxed muscles.

coryo looked over at you while driving, there was a peaceful silence. his elbow leaned outside the car’s window as his slim fingers tapped the steering wheel gently while driving. you noticed his rings decorating his fingers and his new buzz cut hair made his features even more sharp. you took three puffs from the joint handing him it back while caressing your naked thighs trying to pull down the miniskirt.

coryo savored till the last minute your lucid lips around the filter that he made, somehow the sweat made your skin warm and inviting, the blonde felt his cock twitch again and he fixed himself on the seat while trusting with his hips forward. he coughed a bit taking the last puff while tossing the dead joint outside the car. “how's it going in general?” you asked softly feeling already your head light but not too much, it was pleasant. “mh it’s ok, it’s too hot to work or to do anything else, I just want winter back” coryo explained briefly, voice slightly rough from smoking. you chuckled while leaning over to him to pinch his cheek softly. “awww snow wants his snow back doesn’t he?” coryo smiled while looking over to her, instinctively he turned over his face to scratch your fingers with his teeth playfully as you kept messing with him. “by the way, you look good today, bunny, but riding that bike with just this tiny skirt? a little bit dangerous don’t you think?” he asked while gripping the steering wheel with both hands. “how is it dangerous? riding my bike won’t stop me” you felt like wanting to touch him so much, so you placed your hand on his thigh. coryo was one of the hottest boys at school and his reputation made him even hotter and you were a total slut for bad boys.

at your gesture he stiffened a bit looking down at you delicately manicured hand and you kept caressing him going higher and higher but stopping just before his crotch. “can’t keep your hands to yourself now?” he tried to be ironic but just your presence had made him incredibly hard and it was difficult to not stop the car and fuck you in the back seats, your pretty head pressed into the plush of the seats. “maybe I don’t want to keep them to myself” you shrugged while pulling away your hand as he stopped the car in front of your dads house.

he exited the car while trying to hide his hard on while pulling his jeans around to crotch to fix the situation but nothing was effective. coryo pulled your bike outside the back of his car and you thanked him again while kissing his cheek but making the kiss longer. he sighed with a smirk while placing his big warm hand on your hips. you caressed his chest while looking up at him, a small pout on your lips. “you’re busy?” you asked, your long lashes batting at him inviting. “mmh no bunny, i’ll probably just go home, smoke again and collapse on my bed” his thumbs caressed your exposed skin just a little bit above your skirt. “why don’t you come inside? my dads busy he won’t be home till tomorrow noon” you swayed your hips a bit with pleading eyes. “fuck bunny you’re truly tempting but-“ you interrupted him while taking his hand, pulling him towards the house. coryo gave in, closing the car with his keys by distance and following you inside. you were making him feral with your temptations and soft eyes.

thank god the house had an ac so it was cooler inside. you tossed your shoes away together with your backpack and went to the kitchen to collect some water for you both and coryo looked around noticing how the house was elegant and well kept.

he slipped off his beaten up black combat boots and just sat on the big couch. he almost sunk inside it, noticing it was a water couch and smirked as dirty thoughts filled his head.

“the water couch is amazing isn’t it?” you giggled while handing him a glass of water while bouncing next to him making the couch move in small waves. “yeah pretty comfortable” he said as he leaned the glass to his lips not looking away from you for any second.

you then smiled mischievously while slipping down the couch, your knees sinking in the soft fluffy carpet. you positioned yourself between his legs while going for the zipper of his pants pulling it down with pure eyes. coryo almost choked on his water as he looked at you with pleased eyes and a big smirk on his lips. “what the fuck are you doing bunny?” he breathed out a laugh as you tried to pull down his pants together with his boxers. “I want to suck you off so bad so lift up your butt now” your tone was playful and demanding and he did as you said making you able to pull his jeans and boxers down making his pink cock sprung to life. it leaned against his tummy perfectly. “what did I do to deserve something like this without even asking?” he placed his hands behind his head pushing his hips up so he could sink more into the water couch. “nothing special but you’re fucking hot and I can’t wait anymore,” you paused to spit on his tip gently while pushing some curls behind your ears. “and I just know you’re good at selling as you’re good at fucking” you giggled while finally gripping his base. “I knew you were big, shit” you were already fantasizing about taking him deep and hard inside your cunt. “you knew?” coryo laughed again but his breath was getting ragged slightly.

you just didn’t respond, kitten licking his tip and collecting precum as you looked up at him. he bit his bottom lip harshly to just concentrate not to burst his cum all over your pretty glittery makeup and long lashes.

you kissed his length till the base then licking a long stripe back up till you swallowed half his cock allowing space with your tongue and cheek. you started to suck and lick and the moans he was making were pornographic.

after a while saliva was dripping down your chin mostly when you decided to deepthroat him with a fluid movement making the water couch sway gently. “ah fuck bunny, you’re so fucking good” coryo moaned, lust clouding his blue eyes as he gripped your curls to buck into your throat just two times just to hear you gag shamelessly around his cock.

you smiled through teary lashes and bubbles of saliva and lifted your head to just suck at his tip harshly.

“shit- I’m gonna come bunny” coryo announced as you jerked off the rest of his cock while concentrating on the tip. at his words you pulled away standing up and his angry cock just leaned against his tummy as he bucked into air. “are you completely mad you fucking slut?” he said impulsively, the ruined orgasm hitting something into his mind profoundly.

you just smirked while slipping off your crop top and miniskirt. “what did you just call me coryo?” you asked while undoing your bra and slipping off your soaked pink panties. his mouth was slightly agape at your naked body, eyes obsessed. “I said you’re a whore, a slut” he said slowly and challengingly, lips mimicking each final letter. “oh yeah? let this slut show you how much of a whore she is.” you walked on the couch standing above him both of your feet planted on each side of his legs making the water couch giggle.

he was completely transfixed as you opened your legs leaning one of your knees on the headset of the couch. you grabbed his head from behind pushing his mouth on your dripping core.

coryo thought about cumming just from that, just from the smell of your juices and the taste of it.

it was so intense, his tongue lapping at your folds once in a while stopping to suck on your lips or clit while humming. his big hands gripped your ass squishing the plush meat here to push his face further into you.

you were a complete mess as you scratched his head and moaned shamelessly and loudly, hips bucking as you trusted him keeping you up to not let you fall.

“fuck coryo! fuck I’m coming!” you chanted as you gripped his head, legs quivering as your juices splashed into his face. coryo felt on cloud nine as he gripped your hips to not let you fall as he lapped at your juice like the starving dog he was. dying by suffocation from your pussy seemed the only best thing he could think of at the moment.

you came down from your high slipping down as you sat on his lap, grabbing his neck to kiss him sloppily to taste yourself in his mouth. you sucked his tongue, licked the roof of his mouth and even licked his teeth while he playfully rubbed your clit. “mh! I’m sensitive-“ you lamented while pushing his hand away, your lips glistening with his saliva. “I need you inside now coryo” you gently kissed his jawline and neck while rubbing your pussy onto his still angry cock. “your wish is my demand bunny but you’re not gonna come again sooner or later” as he said so with his low voice he pushed his cock inside of your thigh pussy helping himself with his fingers and you laughed a moan while arching and sitting fully on his hard member. he immediately hit your cervix so good you felt helpless.

it was the most passionate and sloppiest sex of your entire life. you rode him like your entire existence depended on it, you knees sunk into the water couch as you bounced on his cock helped by the gentle waves. his hands were placed right on top of your ribs as your hips were too quick to control anyways. you pushed your head so hard against his that your noses squished together as your forehead and your moans and shouts tangled together. both mouths opened, eyebrows furrowed.

coryo didn’t even remember his name anymore when you clenched hard around him signaling somehow that you were close. “stupid bunny thought she could come yeah?” he murmured around a moan as he gripped hard your ass to stop your intense riding. “what the fuck coryo? don’t stop please, fuck!” you lamented but when he pushed your back into the couch your eyes rolled in the back of your skull. coryo fucked into you helplessly, his orgasm close. your back arched and he massaged your breasts cupping them harshly. “shit fuck! I’m coming” he moaned, eyes fluttering close for a minute. to make you pay he pulled out, cum splashing on your tummy and even on your breasts from the intensity of it and you cried out loud from the loss of his cock inside of you. you even laughed a bit through cries because of where his cum landed but then you gripped his ear angrily. “make me come coryo, make me fucking come” she arched rubbing her pussy against his worked out cock. coryo panted a laugh and gripped your jaw with his hand tightly before leaning over to bit and pull your lower lip. he massaged your clit with all of his hand opened while looking at you. “look at your fucked out face, you’re completely drunk on my cock” he laughed again mischievously just to degrade you. he rubbed your entire pussy quickly, slapping your clit once in a while. “now you’re gonna come and admit that only my cock can make you this fucked up mh?” you nodded, eyes rolling once in a while. “yes, yes coryo, only you, only want your cock” he chuckled again while his hand kept going. “that’s what I wanted to hear bunny” at his last words you came, the orgasm making your entire skeleton tremble in pure bliss. you cried his name with your mouth wide open.

when you calmed down a bit he was just caressing your thighs while admiring your body painted with his cum and you smiled while stretching out a bit. “next time you’re gonna come inside coryo” you said it so naturally with a small smile and a yawn and coryo playfully slapped your sensitive clit with two fingers making you whine a bit. “I'm looking forward to the next time in like, 10 minutes, bunny.”

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pawnshopbleus · 2 years ago

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The songbird was soo good I’m a sucker for jealousy 💗 could you maybe do jealous!snow x reader 🤭 ik he’d be so broody and hot

Flickerman's Charm

Summary - Lucretius "Lucky" Flickerman was charismatic and charming, not to mention pretty handsome. Women all over Panem (well, the ones with televisions) fawned over the weathercaster. He seemed harmless enough, but during the games, Lucretius gets a little too close to you and Coriolanus doesn’t like it.

Warning - Jealous Coriolanus, Cunty Draco Malfoy can do no wrong, P in V sex, Quickie in a closet, possessive Coriolanus. No contraceptives, Creampie, Coral slander (She's the 'District Four scum.' I did not like her 🤷🏿‍♀️), Mention of death, Not beta read :0

Author's Note - I AM OBSESSED WITH MAKING THE READER A PLINTH!! Anon, I hope I made you proud.

You cursed under your breath as you watched the big screen. Your tribute had been killed in the most brutal way. Your heart hurts for the poor kid. He was so young, so full of life, and now he was dead. Dead in less than twenty seconds by a group of tributes that had made an alliance. They stole his food and medicine. The food and medicine that you had begged your father for was now in the hands of some District Four scum.

With a huff, you remove yourself from your seat and sit with the other students from the Academy in the regular audience. Your classmates patted you on the back and gave their condolences as you sat there with your arms crossed.

Your reaction was better than your brother who threw his desk in anger as he saw his tribute, Marcus. He was strung up by steel poles and left to hang by his manacles. He was alive but badly beaten, but Sejanus didn’t know that. He was gone before he could see that Marcus was still alive, but there was no saving him. He was mercifully killed by another tribute.

His reaction was understandable. Marcus and him were boys together. They were one and the same, but the Plinths had money. They could afford to get out of there, but if they hadn't, that could have been Sejanus or you up there. That thought caused a chill to run down your spine.

Lucretius "Lucky" Flickerman had announced your tribute's death and watched you walk away. He said something witty and winked at the camera. Coriolanus subtly rolled his eyes and focused his attention back on the big screen.

It had been some time since the last death. People yawned and talked as the cameras flicked between tributes. It was quiet and dead. For the first time that night, there was no action going on. Coriolanus finally let his shoulders fall. He had been so tense throughout the entire first half of the games. At first, Lucy Grey didn’t take his advice. She was selfless and wanted to help the other tribute from her district. That would have been admirable if it wasn’t a life-or-death situation.

Coriolanus got up from his desk and scanned the room for you. He wanted to check in on you and see if you were okay. He knew that the games were hard for you and Sejanus. You two weren’t born in the capital which made you stand out. No matter how much money you had, people would still consider you District trash. Not him though. You were so much more than your status and wealth. You were kind, funny, bright, and extremely beautiful. Coriolanus was lucky you picked him. Out of every man in the Capital, you picked him.

Coriolanus’s eyes found you in the corner of the room. You were sitting in a chair while Flickerman leaned up against the wall. You looked up at him eagerly and ready to please. Flickerman tucked a stray piece of hair behind your ear and tapped your chin affectionately. To the untrained eye, these gestures might have seemed innocent, but to Coriolanus, they didn’t.

His hands balled up into fists at his sides. He had to bite his lip to stop himself from yelling. He didn’t blame you, of course. You could do no wrong. It was Flickerman who was in the wrong. He was so much older than you. He was taking advantage of someone younger and sweeter.

He couldn’t believe the balls of this man. Everyone in the Capital knew that Coriolanus Snow and the daughter of Strabo Plinth were in a very committed relationship. Flickerman must have had a death wish because he patted your cheek affectionately. Coriolanus was the only one who was allowed to touch you. Coriolanus was the only one who got the pleasure of feeling your soft skin under his touch.

Before he knew it, Coriolanus was standing in front of you and Flickerman. He didn’t say a word as he grabbed you by your upper arm and pulled you out of the screening room. He didn’t care that the games were just starting to get interesting. He didn’t care that him storming out with you in his arms had just been broadcast on live television. All he cared about in this moment was you, and only you.

He dragged you to a closet not too far from the screening room. People gave the two of you confused looks as you stumbled every few steps.

Coriolanus pushed you into the dark closet and followed you in. He slammed the door behind him, leaving the two of you in the dark closet. The room was cold and you shuddered at the thought of what might come next.

“Coryo, what are you-”

You were shut up by Coriolanus' lips on yours. His lips moved in tandem with yours as the kiss got deeper and deeper. Coriolanus’s hands snaked up to the sides of your face, guiding you through the kiss. His lips were soft, contrasting the rhythm of the kiss. His body melted into yours. His hips rutted into yours as the two of you got carried away.

Coriolanus pulled away. He softly placed his forehead on yours and looked into your half-lidded eyes.

“Who do you belong to?” he asked, his mouth just inches away from yours.

You smirked, “No one.”

“Who do you belong to?” he bellowed. The people outside of the closet must have been too naive or too invested in the drama to care about Coriolanus's tone.

“You,” you breathed as you kissed him this time. He ripped his uniform off of himself and returned to the warmth of your lips. He squeezed at the flesh of your hips, silently begging you to take off your pants. You followed his request and kicked the red pants and skirt off of you. The Academy’s uniform was very impractical during this time.

Coriolanus' breathing was heavy from kissing you. “Are you sure you want this?” Like the gentleman he is, he asked for your consent. Even during the heated moments of passion, he wanted to let you know that you had the opportunity to say ‘no.’

You nodded your head but that wasn’t good enough. He bit the sensitive part of your neck, urging you to use your words. “Yes, Coryo. Fuck me.”

And he did just that. You were already wet from the way his hips rutted into yours earlier. That simple action made your clit throb and pussy soak your two hundred-dollar panties. Coriolanus flipped you around. Your clothed chest was against the cold wall of the closet and your legs were spread, exposing your cunt to the cold air. Coriolanus circled your clit with the tip of his hard cock and smeared your slick all along his length.

“Look at you. Already wet and I haven’t even touched you.” That was a lie. He’s done a lot more than just touch you, but you didn’t want to correct him.

Coriolanus slowly eased into you, letting your pussy stretch deliciously around him. He groaned in pleasure as your insides welcomed him with ease. You were made for him and only him.

Coriolanus’s hips slapped into your ass as he began to thrust in and out of you. He couldn’t choose what to do with his hands so he decided to alternate between slapping your ass cheeks and holding onto your waist. You, on the other hand, had one hand clamped over your mouth and the other was planted on the wall.

Coriolanus guided your hand from the wall to your clit, urging you to play with it. God, did it feel good. With his balls slapping your tender pussy, and his cock thrusting in and out of you, your clit was already begging to be played with. She was insatiable and begged to be the object that you spent the most time focusing on. You rubbed your clit from side to side, back and forth, trying to find the right angle until you found it. Your eyes fluttered close as you let out a silent moan, loving the way everything felt. Even though the closet was colder than ice, you were getting warm. Your hand rubbed your clit faster and faster as Coriolanus’s thrust matched your movements. If he kept going like that, you were going to come. The delicious thrust against your G-spot caused you to arch your back, searching for a deeper angle.

Coriolanus moaned at the newfound angle. You were so goddamn beautiful and for a split second, he couldn’t believe that you were real. He couldn’t believe that you chose him to be your boyfriend when there were more suitable men in the Capital, but he was thankful that you chose him. So thankful that he was the only one who could feel the way your pussy spasmed as you came. Your body shook with intense pleasure and Coriolanus continued his persistent thrusts, guiding you through your orgasm.

Coriolanus was close too. The way your pussy squeezed his cock made him double over in pleasure. His thrusts became slow and drawn out. His breathing became labored and rough as he tried to hold off his orgasm. Not too long after, he came inside of you. His cock painted your insides white. You could feel his throbbing cock release inside of you, and you nearly came again.

He slowly eased out of you. He knew how sensitive you were after sex and he always tried to make sure that this part was as painless as possible. He grabbed your underwear from the floor and handed them to you. His come had already begun to drip down your thighs. The sight made his cock twitch. You slide your panties up your thighs and let them take their rightful place on your pussy, trapping his come inside of you.

Once the two of you were fully dressed and ready, Coriolanus placed a gentle kiss on your forehead. “You did so good for me, dove. I’m sorry I was so rough earlier.”

“It’s okay,” you mumbled. “I just want to know what I did wrong.”

Coriolanus sighed, “You did nothing wrong. It was Flickerman.”

You were confused as to what Coriolanus was referring to. All he did was tuck a strand of your hair behind your ear and oh- Was Coriolanus jealous?

“Coryo, you have nothing to worry about. I only have eyes for you.” You booped his nose affectionately which caused him to crinkle it and smile. A smile from him was rare these days. He was always so stressed about school, money, the games, or how he was going to style his hair in the mornings.

Outside of the closet, cheers could be heard. You looked at Coriolanus in the dark closet and he opened the door. It took your eyes a few seconds to adjust to the light from the hallway. Coriolanus looked at you in the light and you looked at him. The two of you definitely looked like you two just fucked. You went to go fix your hair, but he moved your hand away from your own hair.

“Leave it. I want them to know that I'm the only man that can fuck you."

#coriolanus snow x reader #young coriolanus snow #coriolanus snow smut #coriolanus x reader #coriolanus snow fanfiction #smut #the ballad of songbirds and snakes #coriolanus snow x you #coriolanus snow #the hunger games

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ivymirrorball768 · 2 months ago

Text

Hey, Little Songbird

Chapter 10: If you're willing to choose

series summary: sejanus plinth’s great grandchild (you) gets reaped for the 69th hunger games.

warnings/notes: canon-typical violence

pairing: finnick odair x reader

wc: 4.8k ao3 link

︶⊹︶︶୨୧︶︶⊹︶

Hey, little songbird, you got something fine You shine like a diamond down in the mine And the choice is yours if you're willing to choose Seeing as you've got nothing to lose And I could use a canary

︶⊹︶︶୨୧︶︶⊹︶

The afternoon of fishing had gone by fairly quickly. You’d started a small fire (very carefully) and cooked up the three fish you’d managed to catch. It was the most anyone had eaten in days. Despite that, it was accompanied by a homesick emptiness as the scent drew you back to District 4.

As evening began, the three of you found yourselves in a similar position to the previous, staring up at the sky awaiting the faces of the fallen.

If Moss’ estimation had been correct, there would be two tonight, both in close succession. They were the designated ‘canon-counter’ as Halle so interestingly named the role. Each of you had adapted a place in your mini alliance: Moss was the calculating, rational one in charge of anything logistical; you were better at finding resources and things to pass the time; Halle was a good watch, looking out for danger and she most definitely calmed any tensions. Her little smile held this all together.

There was an unspoken understanding between you and Moss about her place in all this. As though you both would go to the ends of the earth for her a thousand times over.

Sky alight, the anthem began to play its obnoxious tune. A worry always passed over of it being another ally dead. One you hadn’t seen yet like Evan, Petunia, Amara or Sorrel. After losing 4 members on the first day much of the hope had died out too.

You’d truly gotten to know most of them during the training days, save for District 12 who was late to joining the alliance. There were some you knew better than others, Evan being the main one. Regardless, each of you were interlinked in your own different ways. Moss to Petunia, Petunia to you, you to Evan and so on. The thread tying you all into a perfect little bow.

The first face lighting the sky was someone you hadn’t expected based on their capabilities in training. A career.

District 2: Zinc Masoner

They were tough in training, toned muscles prevailing through those ghastly outfits especially as their stylist seemed to have taken to cutting off the sleeves, no doubt in an attempt to catch the eyes of the gamemakers. People would do anything to stand out even a little, it had evidently paid off with his training score of 10. Not to mention, they were eighteen like most of the other carers which increased the odds.

Well.

Not anymore.

Sometimes it was hard to feel sorry for the carers, so you couldn’t offer much pity. From the little you knew, Zinc seemed enthralled by violence. You wouldn’t want to be at the receiving end of their sick agendas. Career academies taught kids to not just kill, but perform and make it as much of a show for the Capitol as possible.

It was almost a good thing they were gone.

The next face was of a younger tribute, closer to Tulip’s age.

District 3: Citrine Selenite

There were no memories tugging at you. Their face somewhat… meaningless? Which was a downright unsympathetic thought. Someone must’ve cared for them.

Halle curled into you, “At least it wasn’t an ally?” words uncertain but hopeful. Her skin crawled at the sight of any dead, regardless of who or how. She needed a light to look to.

Nodding, you gently smiled down at her.

“Yeah, could’ve been much worse. Now hopefully we won’t have to come across all that muscle.” You huffed a laugh before your gaze caught the daisy still in her hair. It was wilting now. That wouldn’t do.

Giving a mischievous look, you stood, extending your hand to her just as you had a few nights former. She took it eagerly, now accustomed to that glint in your eye.

“Don’t stray too far...” Moss’ voice faded out as you guided her through each willow and past the pond. The search wasn’t far until a small patch of daisies were in sight, a singular patch of moonlight beaming upon them.

“C’mere.” Plucking the wilted daisy from her braids, you searched for a new one that wasn’t so muddied. She replicated your action, ever generous.

It was small moments like this that drew away from the reality of it all.

Halle fed perfectly into your mental facade.

Unknowingly an enabler to your escapism.

But it was so entirely worth it with that smile of hers.

In all the bliss and idealism it felt easy to stay clouded, but the transience of this state creeped into your thoughts. It wouldn’t last. At some point you’d run into trouble.

You took her hands in yours once again, pulling her attention away from the patch of flowers as you tried to prevent your apprehension from visibly showing.

“Halle.. If anything happens, we find anyone who isn’t an ally, I need you to run, okay?” She opened her mouth to protest. Even with her age, she wasn’t one to run away. You cut in.

“No- I know what you’re thinking- and it’s not worth it. Moss and I can handle it.” Eyes locked intently on her. “Besides, even if we got separated you wouldn’t be alone for long. We always find each other like how we found Moss yesterday. Okay?”

It was just precautionary and the worry had felt so abrupt.

Halle’s lips were pursed together and her eyebrows furrowed into a frown, but upon seeing your firm look, she caved with an uncertain nod.

You continued on with the instructions, desperate to get the flood of worries aired and solved. “And you don’t approach any tributes except for Sorrel, Petunia, Amara and Evan, anyone else you run and hide. If someone were to spot you, yell.”

Your eyes remained earnestly locked onto her, covering all the bases for potential trouble. The worst thing in the arena is to be unprepared.

“Do you have that feeling too? That it’s been too quiet?” Halle asked cautiously. It was a sense that had been lurking for a while. That you were all well off, more so than typical for a hunger games.

It didn’t even seem that the other tributes were getting much drama, considering only two canons in the last two days. Though the bloodbath had wiped out twelve kids. Honestly, you’d expected more seeing as you all began underwater, but it wouldn’t be “fun” for the Capitol if everyone died in the first 5 minutes, the gamemakers must’ve had some twist you hadn’t seen.

In fact, that was another worry. Between the mounds of grassland snaked various streams going unknowingly deep. They all seemed connected too. If people were surviving with gear underneath there, like water breathing equipment, there was no telling what could swim out of any crevice.

You didn’t want Halle to feed off your anxiety, so you downplayed the worries as usual. “Yeah… I know what you mean. We should be prepared for anything, but… don’t worry about it too much, we’ll manage whatever dangers.” You offered a small, but reassuring smile.

The words were, of course, spoken too soon.

At least you hadn’t gone for an “everything’s fine!” because everything was about to get a whole lot worse.

“Do you hear that?” She whispered.

“Hear what?”

The low hum cut through the silence of the night.

Halle’s eyes were wide as she recalled the hive right by the pond. She spoke your name, dragged out shakily.

“Buzzing.”

Yeah. You heard it at that point. It was hard to miss as the sound got closer and closer.

Neither of you had disturbed anything, so it could only be the gamemakers doing, which also meant that outrunning it wasn’t an option. If they were targeting the two of you, they wouldn’t stop until they got their show.

Mags had mentioned how the gamemakers could do that - genetically modify things to target specific tributes. It was one of the reasons to be careful with shows of… rebellion. If these bees were coming for you, they’d follow you to hell and back before they retreated. You’d have to find another way to fight this.

There had to be a way.

It couldn’t be a be a guaranteed fatality or the citizens would deem it ‘unfair’, as though they weren’t already setting up 35 kids for slaughter this year.

That was somehow justified in their fucked up sense of morality.

You’d seen previous years where tributes would be in compromising situations and the cameras would pan to the one thing that could save them. But of course, you weren’t blessed to witness that at home with the comfort of your family, distantly watching through a screen. You were here, the tribute that the world was screaming at to figure out the solution.

It was all a test.

Look at it like that.

You were good at passing tests because you always took an interest in the little details. It paid off in more creative exams. Now was the time to put that to use.

Any information about past games.

Any facts about bees.

Any nearby plants.

They all swirled around your mind as Halle tugged on your sleeve in panic. You weren’t moving away and the buzzing was nearing, increasing in urgency and volume.

There was no confirmation that these were actually ‘bees’, you’d heard of tracker-jacker wasps in previous games.

It could be that.

Or something entirely new.

Moss had said something about them before.. what was it?

They’d got the girl from 6. Wait, no, the honey had. The honey was poison.

So they produced honey. Wasps couldn’t do that.

Not tracker-jackers. Thank fuck.

You thought some more, taking in everything you’d seen around you today. Spending a whole day at the pond meant noticing things. What stood out?

There was a bush of berries. You couldn’t identify them so you stayed away. An array of exotic looking wildflowers. Yet again, a little too scary too approach. And a couple of frogs here and there but nothing else remotely helpful or notable. Oh, except one of the plants you grew back home. Mint leaves.

There was something in that memory as you recalled when you’d first seen it when you were 7. It was during a camping trip where you’d spotted it in the wild, digging some up to take home. The thing that drew you in was its lovely scent.

That was it.

The scent was said to calm them.

The bees began circling you, no longer in a tightly packed queue, but scattered and ready to pounce at every angle. Once they reached you, they wouldn’t falter - these were cultivated to kill. You grasped Halle’s hand, hurrying her in the direction of the plant, as your free hand tried to waft away the insects.

It was difficult to see through the swarm.

They began landing on different areas of exposed skin, some of the stingers reaching beyond the layers of clothing. You had to assume that these bees wouldn’t die after stinging, like the ones at home did. They’d be stronger, fearless and out for the attack.

That became apparent quickly enough as Halle gasped out a pained cry.

You were no better off.

There were at least 10 on your hand alone, almost 30 on your arms, more on your face, and an uncomfortable piercing at your thighs. They didn’t all attack at once, it was more in waves, intermittent and unpredictable. You tried your best to flap them away, yelping in pain.

The stings were unlike anything you’d felt before.

Yet alongside the pain was a familiar dizzying feeling, the same one the hydrilla had caused. It seemed to be a running theme this year, distortion and delirium.

It made it far more difficult to push through towards your saving plant, especially as Halle became a chain of dead weight.

She wasn’t doing so good with the feeling, writhing at the sensation, letting out stifled cries.

As you edged closer to the peppermint, the torment became progressively harder to ignore, wincing with each breath.

You agonisingly reached forward to pluck some of the plant, swollen hands fumbling.

As you did so, the bees on your left un-dug their points and hovered gently above you.

A sigh of relief.

You were right.

The gamemakers had placed the peppermint here for a reason beyond its pretty leaves. It was practical and saving. The bees were modified to stop their attack once they’d identified the scent.

The broadcast had probably been hinting at this the whole time. Letting the Capitol citizens build up their excitement at your imminent plight. One moment picking daisies. The next, fearful for the potential dangers in the future. And then proving you were worried about the wrong damn thing.

The arena was a threat beyond just the tributes. This was a reminder of that. A punishment for the days of peace. A way to flaunt that they still held all of the power.

You grasped a stem of the peppermint from the roots, the more you could get the better. This needed to be spread all around covering every part of skin as the bees only seemed deterred if they were close enough to the scent.

So you started with Halle, ignoring the weight forming in your forehead as the dizziness took its toll. She was covered from head to toe, black and yellow humming aggressively. They noticeably targeted her exposed skin, whereas yours were spread more upon the clothing. Perhaps they were attracted to the color? Whatever it was, you didn’t have time to mull it over.

You began with her front, as it was the easiest to reach. At this point she was face-up, eyes squeezed shut to block out the swirling sky. It was more difficult to get the bees off than expected. The peppermint certainly helped, but it was slow-working and the damage had already been done. As they hovered away, you could see the swollen injuries littered across her skin. She was in a much worse state.

You’d let that happen. You pushed that thought down, now was the time to be practical, not to dwell.

“C’mon, I need to get to your back, sweet.”

She groaned in response, barely shuffling over. You could just about see a hoard buzzing beneath her. Sighing gently, you rolled her onto her side pushing past the persistent sting.

After another half hour, you were in the clear - the Capitol had enough action for the night - and all that was left was the gentle cricking of grasshoppers and a terrible feeling settling your stomach at the sight of Halle.

There was a haunting guilt eating at you for ever straying from the safety of the willow. Moss had been right to stay there for the night, not follow you for some childish flower-picking. Now Halle was sickly and delirious all because of your carelessness. You’d failed.

The feeling was heavy. Enough to make you almost content in the suffering stings you’d been left with, reminding yourself that this was barely half of what Halle was experiencing - they’d let you off easier.

She barely stopped writhing around in your hold the whole way back. Each time she paused for even a second, you’d check her pulse.

Every. single. time.

Just in case.

She hadn’t spoken a word to you since the attack, a fair few had got to her face, so it was visibly difficult for her to talk. The state was agonising to even see.

As you made it back to the willow, you were met with the horrified expression adorning Moss’ face. At some point during the whole recovery process, a canon had fired. Not belonging to either of you, but it scared Moss enough. Especially with Halle now limp in your arms.

“Bees.” Was all you muttered to them, despite their clear dissatisfaction with the answer.

Exhaustion was overtaking you, words evading you just the same. Even with that, you rested Halle against your lap and declared you’d take the first watch, thankful for the jolts of pain keeping you conscious.

Your hand found her pulse point and laid there for a while.

This was going to be a long night.

︶⊹︶︶୨୧︶︶⊹︶

It was. Long and restless. Halle had passed out at some point, you could barely call the state sleep, and the pain from the night remained unceasing.

“The stingers are still in.” Moss pointed out.

It was something you hadn’t even thought about.

“Is that a problem?”

“Yes. It’s where the venom goes in.” They looked at you like it was so damn obvious. Maybe there were more bees in District 9 than back home in 4.

“Tweezers?”

“That could release more into your bloodstream. A dull object or just fingernails are best.” They knew a lot about bees then. Moss moved closer to help you remove the stingers from Halle, but not without giving you a look. A firm, serious, point-proving look.

“Learnt your lesson about wondering off then? First the flesh eating plant, now the bees.” They mused.

You sighed. Moss was right, of course. Nothing good seemed to happen when you strayed from the path and this time you’d dragged Halle into it.

“I’ll stick close from now on.”

“…Good.” They let out a breath, hesitating to continue. “I don’t think I can deal with all of this again. Y’know you scared us half to death yesterday.”

“I know I scared her. But it’s not like we could have gone on much longer without supplies- I needed to get them-”

“Not badly enough to page with your life! What you should’ve done was called us over first. You’re not in this alone. I get that you want to keep her safe, I really do - so do I - but sacrificing yourself won’t help her.”

Sacrifice was a bit dramatic, you thought. Reckless might’ve been more accurate. Either way, they had a point. A point Finnick would be echoing just about now. You kept fixating on what he’d told you about looking out for yourself and not carrying the weight of others. It seemed an impossible task, even if it’d maintain some semblance of sanity here.

His advice had stemmed from his games, he hadn’t had an ‘alliance’ exactly, but he’d spared his district partner. Hiding in the bushes when he spotted her tracks, but he didn’t strike then, he just… let her go.

Maybe that hurt him more in the long run because she didn’t make it very far past then - ripped open by some monkey mutt, her guts spilled across the grass. Finnick saw it. The gruesome, inhumane fate she was assigned to. If he’d have killed her beforehand, it would’ve been merciful.

Letting her go was a mistake that the gamemakers were eager to condemn Finnick for. The girl’s torture was simply a cultivated reminder of what the Hunger Games were truly for - brutal animalism.

Perhaps that’s why he was so certain to deter you from your eager little alliances.

Honestly, you’d never forget the look on his face when you first told him you wanted an alliance with District 12 of all places. 4 normally pushed towards the careers, so it was rather left field. He’d scrunched up his face in this half-judgemental, downright shocked frown.

Alternatively, Mags had been more open to the idea of it all. She’d been mentoring a long time, so she was aware that it could be best to have a few loyal allies rather than shaky foundations with a pack of trained killers.

Besides, she’d noticed quickly that there was no changing your mind, just guiding you on your already formed warpath.

And so even with Moss’ direction, you wouldn’t change, clinging to your mother’s poem and the “virtuous soul” you fought so dearly to maintain.

“I’m sorry.”

Was all you had to say . It wasn’t as genuine as it should’ve been, mainly because you didn’t regret the half of it. You three were so much better off with food and weapons even if you had got injured in the process. It could’ve been fatal, but it wasn’t. And so you’d do it all over again if it meant their odds of survival increased.

Halle had scored a 3 in training, which was deadly bad. Her grave had been dug the second it was called.

Moss did a whole lot better with a 7. Higher than you. And they’d certainly earned it by clear their rationality and calculated thinking.

Combined, the group could only get sponsors because you were stronger together. Individually, you’d be entirely without, unless Finnick could really pull some strings. Even then, there was still Petunia and Tulip for your mentors to worry about, so who was to say they’d have the time.

Once you and Moss had finished plucking each of the stingers from Halle’s, still passed out, body, they turned to you.

This wasn’t going to be fun.

To add to the struggle, your injuries weren’t so visible as Halle’s had been, finding the stingers from through the majority black outfit was hell enough. There was no way to get them all out like this.

“I think you’re going to have to take that off? Hopefully they’ve stuck into the fabric rather than your skin.”

They didn’t sound too certain about any of it. The best you could hope was that the cameras would avert their broadcast. It wasn’t likely.

“You might be right. It’s just a little-” You tugged at the top gently, struggling. “-difficult to get it off like this.”

The stingers had practically pinned it down to your body. Moss moved to help you remove your top.

It was a rather uncomfortable sensation to feel the prickles peeling out of your skin. Not all of them detached and a few poking out of your undergarments. Those were not coming off today, thank you.

It took a while to remove them all from your upper half and that wasn’t even the whole lot done. Next was your lower half. You’d felt them buzzing at your legs yesterday, finding the crevices as you’d crouched to reach for the peppermint.

Sighing in resignation, you tugged down the trousers too, but not before replacing your top back on. The sight of your injured form was sickening enough in itself, without the knowledge of it likely being televised to all of Panem.

Hopefully another tribute was doing something more entertaining than this, dragging the Capitol’s attention away.

That was proven even less likely when a familiar beeping ascended from the sky. The mentors had seen enough to know you needed help here.

Moss reached for the silver parachute. This time containing 2 pills and another note.

One each, don’t waste it.

— H & M

The note was from Haymitch and Mags, it was good to see the two working together for the sakes of you two.

District 4 still had all three of their tributes left, so Finnick and Mags were more likely to be jumping around a little, whereas with Haymitch, Halle was his only tribute left. It gave more room to keep an eye on her and you were her gateway to survival. Helping you helped her and it seemed he knew that.

“Can you try wake her? We need to take these and the sooner she’s out of the pain, the better.”

“I agree. How bad is it?”

You gave them a look. The state of you and Halle should tell the answer without any words needed; there were lumps and pricks ranging in shade and severity all over your bodies.

“Yeah- stupid question, I more meant for how mobile we can be today. If you’re both in agony, we’re probably stuck here for a while.”

“We should see how well the meds clear it up before we even think about moving. Besides we’re by the pond, so we have food.” You shuffled slightly, finishing removing the final spikes from your legs before sliding the trousers back on as painlessly as possible.

Moss passed over one of the filled water containers and a singular tablet, before moving over to try and wake Halle. The water you were given was cleaned yesterday using iodine droplets so it was safer than pond murk. The pill was on the larger side, seemingly difficult to swallow though you gulped it down without much complaint.

The effects were faster than you’d expected, but they weren’t necessarily comforting. The humming warmth of your uneven skin was replaced by a sweaty chill as the burning sensation seized for the first time in 11 hours.

Halle awoke with a start, on edge after the gamemakers cruel attack. You couldn’t blame her, you were certainly paranoid all through the night as each flap of the willow in the wind was no longer assumed innocent. They hadn’t gotten their blood with you yet. Hopefully they’d settle with agony.

Her eyes met yours the second she’d come to terms with her surroundings, trying to move towards you. It didn’t work of course, any attempt at movement replaced by an audible cry, so you moved towards her instead. Her swollen hand was reaching for you.

You couldn’t fathom why she’d continue this.

Why she’d keep looking to you for safety when you could offer none. That’d been proven.

There were certain things you weren’t good enough to protect her from. It was times like this you wished you’d prepared when you were younger, trained for the games even if it was a bit illegal. Because then maybe you’d stand a chance and, in turn, she would too.

Guilt radiated off of your skin.

“How are you feeling kiddo?” You pushed through the lingering sensation.

She hummed in response, no certain answer as she wasn’t willing to lie. The question was as pathetic as Moss’ earlier “how bad is it?”, but other words evaded you. Two echoed the halls of your mind. The same ones you’d half-heartedly mumbled to Moss the night before, now genuine and fearful as ever.

“I’m sorry.”

This caught Halle off guard as her eyes widened a fraction at the apology. She hadn’t blamed you yet.

She should’ve blamed you.

You were careless with her life after all that spiel about her safety. It was pathetic and hypocritical.

Halle didn't see it that way, in fact, she seemed hurt that you did. “It wasn’t your fault.” She whispered, voice unsteady. Moss glanced at you, seeing if you’d believe it. You didn’t. You wouldn’t.

As Halle went to continue, Moss stopped her, insisting on her taking the medication first. The parachute had arrived while she was asleep, so you quickly explained. Her eyes traced your skin, finding that the bumps on your skin had settled, no longer looking so inflamed and violent.

Seeing the results, she took a swig of water, swallowing down the pill just as you’d done.

Even so, this didn’t distract her from the matter at hand. Not even as her skin began to burn in that same cold sweat. She pushed through.

“You offered me something special. A moments peace. Even if that doesn’t last… I’ll take it for however long I can.” Halle fidgeted at the uncomfortable sensation and her underlying acknowledgement that this alliance wouldn’t last forever. Or worse, that she wouldn’t. “Us three stick together? No matter what?” The words came out as steadily as she could manage. Her small face crumpled up in need for confirmation.

To your amazement, Moss reassured her first, their response instinctual and automatic. “No matter what.” Their gaze flickered to you, ready to provide Halle with one of your homey aphorisms.

“One of us is going to get the hell out of here, pick as many flowers as we want, maybe even plant some of our own and the others can fly up with the little birdies. Like Cress and Laurel and Cole and Heath.” The fallen allies. “But we stay together, I promise.”

Your breath caught in your throat at their words, reflecting just what you’d told your younger brother. The goodbye where you said it was just an adventure, you were off to see some birdies. A way to hide the truth. It was a lie you told to children.

And that’s what Halle was.

A child.

You knew why Moss was saying it like that, like something you’d say, because, however much it scared you, Halle found comfort in you.

And so Moss was painting death as another one of your fairytales.

One where you’d all fly away to a better place.

︶⊹︶︶୨୧︶︶⊹︶

Chapter 11: Seeing as you've got nothing to lose

#hey little songbird finnick odair fanfic #thg #the hunger games #ao3 #finnick x reader #finnick odair x reader #ivymirrorball768writing #ivymirrorball768fanfics #ao3 fanfic #ao3 link #ao3feed #ao3 writer #hadestown #finnick odair #finnick fanfic #finnick odair x y/n #finnick odair x you

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becauseimamastermind · 2 months ago

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Strabo Plinth

older younger

Vesta Plinth

older younger

Sejanus Plinth

older younger

#i have plinth family brain worms soooooo moodboards for them all!!!!!#Luciano Leroux is my sejanus faceclaim because LOOK AT THOSE EYES.#also strabo has been on the brain #plinth family #strabo plinth #vesta plinth #sejanus plinth #moodboards

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daenysthedreamersblog · 7 months ago

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SECRET OF US - VIII

i told you things

i told you things that i never said to anybody else, i regret them but I'll pack it up and practice leaving you were all at once 'til the fade to black 'til the yellow glow turned a little sad you were in my hands, but you're good at leaving

masterlist // previous chapter // next chapter

summary: you head into the viper's den of your father's household with coriolanus snow

pairings: modern!coriolanus snow x reader

warnings: MDNI! swearing, drinking, smut, oral (f receiving), p in v sex, unprotected sex

notes: rip tiktok also sorry im a slow writer ya'll im a perfectionist to my core

The sun didn't fit. It should be dark, gloomy depressing outside to follow the tone for today, rain and storms hiding away any chance of joy...instead the sky was clear, a bright yellow ray beaming down into you face making you look away.

His hand is resting on your thigh, you watch his finger tap along the meat of you leg. You think of a time when you glared daggers at a boy's head as he sat in front of you in some class. You follow his arm up until your looking at said boy's head watching the road. What force led you here to this moment in time? You knew what force back then, what stern hand had guided you, the voice incessantly in your head sounded too much like your father's.

You sighed staring back out into the road ahead, "Do you remember back then?" He makes a noise to question you. "School, when we first met."

He shuffles his hand around the steering wheel eyes focused on the distant road. "Um I guess, why?"

"No reason." You chew on the side of your finger and wonder how different your lives could have been if you hadn't given into your father's anger, a senseless competition. Would a hand be resting on your thigh still? "Do you think we would have been friends?"

He finally glanced over at you, "If you hadn't been such a raging bi-!" You whack his arm, "I'm kidding! Probably, who knows...and anyways its over now no use dwelling on it."

You watch his knuckle tighten slowly on the wheel and you feel like he's not telling the truth about something, but you don't push. He's right, the past was the past. "You were so cute in school I hated hating you."

"Figured." He smirked over at you. "And what about now?"

You cross your arms, "No comment."

"Spoken like a true politician." He chuckled. "Got to keep the cards close huh?"

"It's where they belong." You glance out the window.

His hand lands back on your thigh, "Maybe they belong to the wind." You wanted to, for him, for yourself, but trusting him was too hard despite trying. You had tried for years with Coriolanus Snow, years of blood, sweat and tears to ruin each other. That creeping fear that he was out to get you didn't go away within one sweet kiss.

You chew on your finger until the skin bleeds.

Your parents had lived close to the academy where you had went to high school, still owned the home where they frequently stayed. They also owned property away from the city, where the traffic was light and the stars were visible.

The house was right off the beach, overlooking the water with plenty of space to accommodate you and your friends, but you had no intention of actually staying there, trapping yourself in with your parents.

Instead, you followed Coriolanus into the elevator of the hotel you were choosing for lodging. "Do they know you're in yet?"

"No." You shook your head toying with the handle of your suitcase. "Few more hours of peace right?" You glance up at him, "Did you come up here with..."

The Plinths.

He nodded, "Yeah." You knew they owned property across town, had went to a party with Arachne and Clem there when you were younger. You figured he hadn't come back since Sejanus had died.

"Isn't it crazy we've been so involved in each other lives, yet we don't seem to really know each other." The elevator dings and you lead the way out and down the hall.

The students you had went to high school with you had been going to school with since you were a child. Your families grew up together, you had the same circle, and hung around the same people. Yet, he sometimes felt like a stranger to you. "Probably because we never really knew anything, just the surface layer."

You slide the key into the door and push it open rolling your suitcase off to the side and flopping down across the king bed. "Aren't you just a giant onion Coriolanus Snow?"

"An onion." He laughs the bed dipping as he crawled next to you.

"Let me peel you." You drew circles into his wrist as he stared down at you. Gosh he was beautiful, you had shied away from that, denied that but now you can't stop admiring it.

He smiles, "Tell me something real."

You let him brush hair away from your face, "You have such pretty eyes."

"What a cop out." He rolled those pretty eyes, "Too easy."

"Doesn't make it any less true."

He leans down and kisses the side of your mouth, "True." You waited for him to speak his truth, "I'm worried about tonight." You pulled back confusion written on every feature. Coriolanus sighed, "He-Your father...he-well you know what he's like."

You sat up, "I don't understand."

"I just...he's not going to like that you and I are..." You sucked in a breath. Say it, define this, make it real. "Not trying to kill each other." Disappointment settled in your stomach. "I have a feeling he's going to try and change that."

You furrow your brows, "Why?"

He ran a hand over his face, "He wants whats best for you, and that doesn't include anyone but him."

"He doesn't get to decide that." You climbed on top of him cupping his face. "I'm done letting him control me."

His hands slid around your waist, "I know."

You kiss him words being too raw to tell him you thought he was the best thing you had right now. He swings you around until your back hits the bed, until he’s hovering over you, kissing down your neck, collarbones pulling your shirt over your head to continue trailing his mouth down the center of your breast.

Your fingers work his belt open to allow him the space to push his pants down his legs and onto the floor. He's kissing down your stomach, kissing your hips as he inches off your underwear and pants laying you naked before him. He kisses your inner thigh, kisses the heat pulsating from your between your legs, and then he plants the gentle kiss to your clit as your back arches in anticipatory pleasure. He worships you, he glides his tongue along your clit, swirling and teasing the bud as your claws dig into his scalp. He presses down hard, moving his mouth in delicate motions that draws sweat to your hairline as two finger push inside of you. Your back arches even further, your hips tilting upward as his mouth wraps around your clit, stars peppering your vision. "Coryo," You moan for him feeling his smile deep within your cunt. His tongue slides over your clit one last time, fingers curling deep inside of you the pleasure incinerating you before you orgasm. You turn your face as you whine out into the air feeling him lap up every ounce of you until your withering under his mouth.

He's off the next second flipping you onto your stomach and hoisting you up onto all fours. You have one moment to grip the sheets before he pushes his cock inside of you. You groan from your throat as he grabs onto your hips to slam in and out of you and all you can do is arch for him to slide him deeper, slide him to that spot you like all too well. "So good," he pants out. "So good to me." You flatten your chest to the bed, bitting onto your knuckle as your body bends even further for him.

"Mhm," Is all you can whimper out as he thrust hard and fast into every inch of you. Your body is clenching down around him, the pressure building up too fast already. He was right, it was so good, how could it be this good between you two. You had been with other people, he no doubt had as well, but this...this was a different plane of existance. "You feel so good." You tell him the same.

He lets out a breathy laugh, his strokes slow and deep. "Do I?" He reaches around your body fingers pressing into your clit, drawing circles into it. "Tell me baby girl, tell me how good it feels." You do. You're a blubbering whining mess for him, mewling for more as you scream into those stupid hotel sheets. "Cum on my cock then, show me how good it feels." You do that too twisting your fingers into the bed as your body clamps down around him. He grips onto you hips again moving at a rabid pace to chase his own pleasure, spilling inside of you with your name on his lips.

You lay like that for a while, bent over, him inside of you until it didn't seem reasonable anymore. He reluctantly pulled out, you reluctantly let him, and then he's pulling your sweating bodies together across messy sheets. You need to shower, you need to get ready, prepare for this disastrous event.

But you close you eyes, and revel in the warmth of his skin a little longer.

You smooth down the black dress, fidgeting with the jewelry littering your fingers. "Hey." His warm hand slides into yours. "We don't have to go." He comes in close tucking hair behind your ear as he trails a finger down your cheek. "We can go back, spend the whole night in that hotel room." You sucked in a breath cheeks heating despite the slight chill in the air. He smirked, "Spend it having you spread open beneath me."

You leaned into his hand, "As nice as that sounds..." You tugged his hand down from your face your fingers tangled in an intricate web of connection. "I have to face him."

The door opens and you find yourself dropping his hand taking the slight sidestep away from him. You catch it, he catches it, but you avoid looking at him. "Mother." You rush into her arms the only comfort you had ever found growing up.

"My darling girl." She kisses your cheeks and peers at Coriolanus Snow. "Mr. Snow, what a surprise." She holds out her hand allowing him to press a respectable kiss to it before ushering everyone inside to avoid awkward conversations.

You stand there in the foyer awkwardly anyways. "You have a lovely home." He tells your mother.

She waves his flattery away, "She's not in her prime, only had the dust shook off for this pointless party." She eyed you tenderly, "Come by our building when we all get back to the city, now that is a lovely home."

"I'm sure he has better things to do that admire your paint choices." You fought to not roll your eyes as worlds incessantly collided in front of you. Coriolanus had always been overly cordial with the elite set of parents your fellow students had, smoozing them at various events...even yours.

He smiled down at you, "I'm a avid paint admirer." He runs a hand down the sleeve of your coat. "Let me hang this up for you."

Your mother motions down the hall, "Coat check is right through there." You shrug out of your coat and watch him disappear with it, "I thought we hated him?" She whispers in your ear.

"We do-we did...I did." You glance at her. "I don't hate him anymore, at least I don't think I do."

She studied your face, "No you don't hmm." You had your father's eyes, cold, hard eyes chased away by all the warmth in your mother's who's softness always enveloped you, a softness you searched endless inside of yourself. She gave you life, she knew your soul even if you didn't. "I meant what I said, have him come by when you get back."

"No." You scoffed.

Her eyes narrowed, "You're as difficult as your father, your own worst enemy." You hear his footsteps returning, "Why don't you give him a tour?" She runs a hand down your arm before walking away.

He smirked down at you, "Absolutely not," You pointed at him.

His hands grabbed onto your waist pulling you in, "Show me you room kitten."

"You're as bad as her." You groaned shoving past him and up the stairs. You walk him into the house showing him various offices and rooms and bathrooms. He's not interested in it, he knows you're stalling as you approach the last door. "This is my room." You grimace as you open the door letting him walk inside.

He flips on the light glancing around at your bedroom as if he never been in one before. It was different than you room in the city, the one you chose, you decorated and lived in. This one was a view into your adolescents, the version he never got to see behind closed doors. He peers at your bare desk, littered with random pictures of Arachne and Clemensia. He slowly gazes at the walls covered in various awards and degrees, the small book shelf with childish fiction books hidden beside literature your father planted. Then his fingers are trailing along the white floral detailing on your powder blue bedspread.

"Roses," He traces the stem off of one.

"I guess." You were picking at your nails waiting for the snap of judgement.

He finally meets your eyes, "It's cute." You don't respond as he starts digging through your bedside table. "Your mother seemed okay with me being here."

"She knows how to bite her tongue." You step inward, "Been hiding her opinions for years now."

He sighs sitting on your cushioned perfectly made bed, "And what are her true opinions of me then kitten?"

You come around the bed, fingers trailing along the white wooden bedpost until you're in front of him. "I'm sure nothing appropriate." You smirk down at him as hands ghost the back of your thighs until his palms are pressed into your backside.

"What are your opinions?"

You straddle him, his hard cock digging into you. "Nothing appropriate."

His mouth hovers along yours, "Tell me something real."

I need you. "I need you inside of me."

He kisses you hard as you grind your body down onto his. It's fast and heated and you're fighting with his pants as he hikes up you dress to dig his fingers into your soaked cunt. "So needy for me." He smiles along your mouth, nipping your bottom lip before sprawling you out on your old bed.

"Always," You don't let him go far. You keep your arms around his neck allowing him to spread you open, to push inside of you slowly, inch by inch, letting him envelope you inside out. When he's filled you completley you let your legs wrap around him gently, letting him rock his hips against yours. You felt every inch of his body, every inch of his soul consuming you with every long slow stoke of his cock. He kisses you again, tongues melding together as your bodies had done, until every part of you seems attached to his.

Your hands trail down his back, feeling every muscle rippling under his dress shirt as he thrust into you. You're never sated, never full enough of him and you think you may never be and the idea terrifies you. So you tuck your face into his neck and kiss him, kiss his pulse and hold onto him before he slips through your fingertips, before you let him.

In the end you know it would be your fault, it had always been your fault.

You feel heat filling your veins, his fire engulfing you in it's blue flame raging against your amber glow. "My girl," He groans against your face, the words branding on your skin. "My pretty girl." In some other version of this you would ask him if he means it, if he could ever want you that way, and maybe he would, but not here, not now. You relish in the delusion of simplicity of being his.

You tilt your hips, you take him deeper, you close your eyes and feel every shock of pleasure shooting across your body. You clamp down around him, like you always would, and orgasm tangled up in everything that was him. His hips stutter as he cums soon after open mouth breathing against your hair. You feel the tightness in your throat, the realization of the serene bubble you made hidden under sexual desire. There was so much more, so much, and you could never look it in the face.

He kisses your forehead, and you wonder if he feels it too.

He stares down at you gentle fingers brush hair out of your face, "I may have smudged your makeup a little."

You chuckle at the break in tension, "That's alright."

"You're still beautiful." Your cheeks burn, "You've always been beautiful."

"Even back then?" You wince when he pulls out, as he helps you sit up to collect yourself.

He nods as he adjust his pants. "Then, now." He smirks up at you, "You've aged like an expensive wine."

"Your favorite flavor I assume?" You pull your dress down into place.

He watches you, "You are exquisitely delicious kitten."

You smile to yourself as you use the small vanity to fix yourself back up, cover up marks and smudges, straighten out your dress. “I see why now.” He says and you look at him through the mirror as he stares out of your bedroom window. “Why you like to go there..” The docks in the city.

You walk over to him taking in the same view he was; the dark water lapping on a cold beach. The lone boats still sitting along the nearly empty dock of people waiting for spring to break through finally. “It’s nice to always imagine the escape, picture a different life, romanticize the little things.” You sighed, “I spent a lot of time in here; needed to pass the time, wondered if I could float away too.”

“So philosophic.” He smirks.

You gaze up at him, “Just a depressed teenager actually.”

He chuckles, “No wonder you grew teeth and claws.” You turn to face him as he creeps closer to you, slowly like he might spook you, and he could because he was right. You always thought you were born with fangs, poison laced in your gums from who you were always meant to be, but really it had been a defensive measure. Now it seemed to difficult to put them away after so long, all the raw, jagged parts of you and he still chose to come closer. Your heart flips in relief, in some sort of confirmation, that he could see you, but it's falling just as quick with fear, with a need hide from his scrutinizing gaze. You've spent years honing this craft, tucking the monster quietly inside, trying to make it small enough to fit into a life that wasn't yours. He cups your face anyways forcing you to burn underneath its intensity.

Your brows crease, "Coriolanus." He kisses you, softly, like you were made of precious glass, melted and woven to fit within his palm. It's too much, too much emotion is pouring into your chest that you need to pull away. As if you could let it all come to the surface, as if you could believe the walls you had spent years building could be let go.

He sighs through his nostrils as he opens his eyes to stare down at you disappointment in his gaze, "You dropped my hand."

You played dumb, "What?"

"You dropped my hand."

You scoff, "What did you expect me to do, to say? 'Hey mom here's this guy I'm fucking?' Doesn't really roll off the tongue."

He rolled his eyes, "She knows who I am."

"That's not the point."

He narrowed in on you, "Then what is the point?"

"You tell me!" You snap like the viper buried deep down inside of you, the wild snake your father had forced you to be, the creature within your soul Coriolanus had always seen. You're breathing heavy watching him study every expression hidden under false anger.

"You always go on the offensive when you're avoiding questions." He reminds you after he had spent years observing you to dissect your soul. He takes a slow step forward, his middle finger twisting around your own, "I get it, truly more than you know. I just wish you knew. Is it so hard to trust me?"

"Yes." You breath.

His eyebrows furrow, "Why?"

"I spent my whole life mistrusting you, how do you unlearn a behavior." You feel your fingers tugging away from him. "Do you even trust me?"

He's pulling your hand back to him, to hold against his heart; steady and strong beneath his sternum. "More than I should." And he was right to, you were never able to offer him any security back in regards to whatever this was. You had always had to strike deeper, more lethally. ”Change, you change, that's how you unlearn things...I changed."

"Not much."

He playfully glares, "Just enough."

Maybe you had misjudged him, maybe you had always misjudged him. “What do you want?” It wasn’t accusatory, but the honest question.

“What do you want?” There is was, the stalemate, the cold war of neither of you wanting to admit the ever consuming truth. No, he would never admit defeat first. He wanted to pummel you beneath his iron fist first, or did he? You weren't sure you knew anything anymore. You knew you wanted to hear the words from his mouth, words you know you may never hear at all, pathetic words you're sure were just your own.

I care about you. I want you. I'm falling in love with you.

"Come on." You struggle to step away fully so your hand comes up to interlock with his. "We're already late.”

So, no you may never hear them because even you weren’t willing to reveal the soft parts of yourself, so why should he? Everyone had always controlled you, used you, and even when you tried to make your own choices it was thwarted by your father. It was difficult to relent that feeling, that fear; it was difficult to push the fangs back up into your gums and give in to those things you truly wanted.

You let him walk slightly behind you as you head back into the party, as you head right for the open bar needing to dull the feelings swarming your head. But now that your here, downing a glass of champagne where everyone can see your father's heir, the anxiety sets in. Your skin was crawling, you felt everyone staring at you as you drained a flute quickly grabbing another one. This was stupid, this was your dumb idea and you wanted to peel off your own fingernails to claw your way out of this pit of snakes.

"There she is." Your father's voice sends oily sludge down your spine as he speaks your name, demanding you to turn and look at him. You do. He's the same as ever, more gray hair popping up on his head than last time, his clean shaven face, dark soulless eyes peering into the depths of yours. He's quick to take your hand, pull you in close pretending to kiss your cheek. "What is Coriolanus Snow doing at my party?"

"I invited him." You're firm.

"Stupid girl." You quickly search the party finding him speaking with your father's business partners...networking. You should have felt unease at the sight, but you had stopped competing with him long ago and who cares if he networked for his own career. "Highbottom." Your father turned to the man next to him, "My daughter had told me her email was hacked a few months back, she never got your message for her to apply."

His fingers dug into your shoulder forcing you to respond, to grovel. "I'm so sorry Mr. Highbottom, I know how amazing of an opportunity that internship would be at your company. I would love to still apply if you are open to more candidates."

He didn't care, he had always been going to give you the position due to your father. "Technology is a fickle thing hmm...Come by my office when you get back to the city, we'll set something up for you."

You shake his hand. "Thank you sir."

"Good job." Your father had whispered once Highbottom had disappeared from view. "Now get that fucking leech out of here."

You glared; you’re glad he’s upset, you’re glad he didn’t plan for this. It didn’t make his disappointment easier to withstand, "It's not like that anymore."

Your father ordered a glass of brown liquor sneering into the cup. "Oh really. Tell me how many kisses did it take for you to forget who he is.” You don’t answer only take another long, slow drink. “Not much I suppose since he’s here no doubt whispering into everyone’s ear about how he’s the better option than you.” He watched you set the empty glass down before you looked at him. “The funny thing is…he is.”

It hurts. It had always hurt, you don't let on. “Then let him be better.” You narrow your eyes, “I’ll go where I’m wanted not where you’re wanted.”

Your father sighed, “Then go nowhere I guess.” He shakes his head, “Who would want you? A love sick withering woman who would rather wander aimlessly then stake her claim at what is so rightfully hers.” Your eyes quiver, “You’ve brought yourself so low, and for what? That bottom feeder?”

The sound of Coriolanus saying you father’s name snaps you out of it. “Mind if I borrow your daughter?”

He gives you a tight lipped smile. “We’re not done with this conversation.” Your father finished his drink and walked away without even acknowledging Coriolanus.

You stared up at him your insides steeling up. “Come dance.” He pulls you by the hand towards the middle of the room, you can’t even hear the sound of the slow music playing over the sound of blood rushing in your ears. You can’t even hear him ask his questions until he says your name multiple times. You look up at him, "How did it go?"

You laughed sarcastically into the air. "I am a coward. It's like the minute I'm around him I'm just a little girl again scared to disappoint her father."

"What does he want anyways?" He asked his hand sliding down the length of your spine, like his touch was the only thing holding you together.

"Money, power, glory." You watch the back of his head leaving the room. "He wants his empire, he wants me right there beside him so even when he's forced to step down he'll always be my shadow, he'll always be in control." Your eyes meet Coriolanus’s once more, "I think most of all, he wants me to want it."

"And you don't."

"And I don't." Then you’re looking at his chest, feeling the warmth of his palm within your own, and once again wonder how you found yourself here; finding comfort with him, finding security with him. "I don't know what I want, who I am...I just know I don't want to be controlled."

"When did you realize that?" He asked simply.

It wasn't simple, and you sighed. "Arachne had just come out." The air feels tight as you recount. "Her parents weren't happy, and she had come over with Clem for comfort, for reassurance. My father..." You swallow hard. "My father wanted me to convince her to lie, to pretend to be someone she wasn't, to take it back., and I almost did it. I almost agreed to do it."

You look up at his gaze; he wasn't judging you like you had judged yourself. He had always seen the worst parts of you and never looked away. "What made you decide not to?"

"I got back to my room, and I saw her laughing with Clem and I realized I never wanted my friend to not smile like that." You blink remembering the brightness in her eyes, "If she had to be pretend to be someone she wasn't...she never would have been able to be happy. I couldn't do that to her." His hand soothes the small of your back, "If I was more like him, if I wanted to be like him, I would have been completely okay with ruining her life."

He stilled. "You aren't like him."

Couples are spinning around you, laughter rings out in distant areas of the room, you feel your mother watching you somehow, or maybe that was something only mother’s could make their child feel. “I always felt too much, too keenly; hatred and worry and…love.” His blue eyes twinkle in the golden chandelier light. “Hatred is easier to admit than love.” Too much, too much, you’re revealing too much… "It's easy, but his…disappointment, his disgrace, it’s too much to bear. I have no more room for it, and it disgust me how much I allow him to bend me.”

His hand strokes your cheek forcing you to tilt your face up for him, “The wind kitten.” He repeats, “The only way to make room is to let some of it go. You can’t change him, you cant let him change you.” Another brush of his thumb, “I see you…I’ve always seen you. I know who you are, who you harbor, the bad and…the good.” He's kissing you then, cupping your face up to his as you hold onto his wrist savoring the taste of him. ”Let’s get out of here."

“Okay.”

Soon enough your rushing back though the party trying to find coats and purses to leave in a mad dash. Your father couldn't be too mad, you had come, made amends with his friend, would maybe try for that job...probably not. "I can't find my phone.” You cursed your dress, you wished you gave it to him instead but your searching ever nook for that stupid device, and then you remember. “My room, I-I must have left it up there earlier.”

Your room is dark once more as you push the door open seeing the screen light up on a slightly rumpled comforter. You scoop it up into your hands before turning and coming face to face with your father. “Did you really think you could leave without finishing our conversation?”

“Yes, I’m leaving.” You held your chin high trying to draw from Coriolanus’s strength.

His eyes narrowed, ”Before you go..." You’re mid trying to open your phone to text Coriolanus when you look up at him. "Did he ever mention his father to you?"

"What? No? Why would he?" Crassus Snow had died many years ago, before you had even went to school with his son. He had worked with your father for some time but nothing noteworthy.

Your father shrugged. "Interesting."

You cross your arms. "Spit it out already."

"Crassus Snow and I were friends." He said the air growing heavy, thick with the weight of his words; they hung in the space between you, suffocating, pressing against your chest. "I was making huge success, he wasn't, invested into the wrong places and he was jealous, hungry for more, for what I had." Your hand covered your mouth as your father stood up straighter. "He was never able to recoup what he lost. He died knowing his fortune was in ashes, his only saving grace would have been his son, so I couldn't have that. No, he would not haunt me any longer."

So he had sent you to destroy that last living memory of an old friend, an old enemy. You remember the lecture, the hatred your father had instilled in your for that boy.

Your father smirked, "And I knew he would have left his son the same task."

"He's not like his father." You shook your head, you never knew the man, but if he was anything like your father...

"Isn't he? Just as cruel and manipulative and power hungry with an ambition like a knife." He laughed at you, "Do you truly think he cares for you? Come on darling I know I raised you to be smarter than that."

Your heart froze up, "Maybe he changed after the accident, maybe he realized theres more important things in life."

Another cruel laugh, "He realized he's nothing without The Plinths and he's lucky they never pressed charges for him getting their son killed."

"He-He..." You're spinning out words hitting you like bullets.

Your father struck his final blow, "He's using you." A cold whisper. "You don't think I've been watching him all night, networking, scheming his way into places meant for you. He's using you like he used that Plinth boy and you are falling into the same little trap that will get you cast out or worse..." Two hands ran down your arms, a father's comfort. "You're faltering, you're letting opportunity pass you by, giving up power for a silly boy who could never love you."

"That's not true." Your nails dig deep into your palms.

"Is that all it took for you to give up? A sweet kiss, the moon on a string?" He tsked at you like a child. "I would pity you if I wasn't so disappointed, but then again you are just a woman.”

Anger flared within you steel locking around every wall. “Woman? Is that meant to be an insult?”

“Of course it is.” He scoffs. “If you were a man he wouldn’t have been able to weasel his way close to you. He knew all the tricks to emotionally manipulate you.” He laughed at you, “He’s probably down there right now sealing a deal meant for you because you let him pass you by, you let him make you weak.” You want him to stop, to shut up, to leave you alone, so you slip into the only version of you he adored.

You smirk, fangs slipping down the lie burning hotter than the poison dripping out. “You don’t think I know that. You don’t think I can see through his little tricks.” You tilted your head to the side hair spilling onto your shoulder. “Oh father, you should know me better, you raised me.”

“Oh?” He raised an eyebrow urging you to continue.

“I’ve been planning it for months, the moment I knew we were going to be scene partners.” You gaze at your nails as if destroying a life was boring. “It’s my final move, my checkmate to say. I’ve gotten him right where I want him and he believes he can see some version of good inside me to soften up.” Your smile feels evil, vile. “You wanted me to hate him, but I hate him so much more on my own. I can’t wait to send him out with nothing, to destroy him one last time, to be rid of him forever.”

Your father actually smiles at you, “I’m impressed. He does seem rather smitten with you.”

“He's a leech as you've always said father.” You hold your head with putrid pride. “And he’s hooked on tight.”

The floorboard creaks your bedroom door opening wider as your infected heart plummets to your stomach, the ground feels like it had fallen out from beneath you.

“Coriolanus.” His blue eyes are dark with anger, with pain, with-with… “Coriolanus.” You go to chase after him but your father’s grip wraps tight around your arm.

Your father's mouth curved into a wicked smile,”If only all of that were true hmm?”

“You knew.” You’re hyperventilating, heaving heavy breaths. “You knew-He…” You think to your phone open on your bed. “You texted him to come up here…you knew he would be standing there…you egged me on to say all of that, to hurt him.”

His grip squeezes on your bicep. “I know what’s best for you, and Coriolanus Snow is not that.” You try to move but he's latched on tight, "You think I would let that boy, with his father's blood, take anything that was mine?"

“You’re wrong.” You seethe getting in close knowing everything you felt for him was the opposite of hatred. “He’s better than both of us.” You wrangle out of his grasp, and then you’re running after Coriolanus Snow. “Corio!” You watch him throw his coat on, storming out of the front door. “Coriolanus!” You’re sprinting down the steps. “Snow!” He stills on the same porch you had arrived together on, in the same place you had dropped his hand. “I-I didn’t mean what I said.”

He doesn’t even turn to look at you. “He raised you as vicious as him, power hungry and armed to the teeth.” The same words he had said to you on that concrete sidewalk. "Don't waste your breath, you'll just embarrass yourself."

“Please.” You feel tears brimming in your eyes, ‘Please just…look at me.” He won’t and you go to reach for him, but you hand falls back to your side. “You asked me what I wanted earlier.” You swallow back fear. You were tired of lying, pretending to be strong, pretending to not care when all you cared about was him. Screw the past, screw the feud and your father, you wanted Coriolanus Snow, you wanted to love him. “I want you.”

You can’t see his face, but you know he’s glaring. “I don’t care.” You can't see straight, your vision is spotty. “I don’t care about you. I never did.” Your knee buckles, “You were just something to pass the time, to see if I could use you all the same.”

You reach out finally but his coat slides past your fingertips as he walks away from you, as he disappears into the night.

You don't go back inside. Instead you drown yourself in a bottle of champagne on a frozen beach, watching boats sit stagnant when you’re stupid enough to text him.

Please Coriolanus…talk to me.

The text never gets delivered.

It hits you then.

He blocked you. He left you.

He left.

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phantomamour · 11 months ago

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𝐢 𝐰𝐨𝐮𝐥𝐝 𝐝𝐨 𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐲𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐢𝐟 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐰𝐨𝐮𝐥𝐝 𝐡𝐞𝐚𝐫 𝐦𝐞

sejanus plinth x fem!reader

cw// i've never written for sejanus before so maybe ooc sejanus but i tried my best, unrequited love, sejanus fucks up bad (like real bad), angst, no happy ending (yet)

You had always been beautiful. That much was painfully clear from the moment Sejanus met you on his first day of class. He had been the one to realize it when you wore your uniform shirt on backwards by accident after waking up too late, noticing only when he pointed to the tag hanging down your chest before he offered you his sweater to cover it until you could change. He had liked you from the moment you made your two-person book club and spent more time with each other the following semester. He adored you when you “accidentally” destroyed the lacrosse trophy Festus flaunted. And he knew he was in for it when you told him you liked Coriolanus last spring.

His love for you had only increased over the years, and now, as he walked into his dorm room to start up his senior year, he realized that no matter how hard he tried over the summer, he couldn’t stop loving you. Not anytime soon or even as far as he could see in the future. Of course, you didn’t know of his feelings, nor did any of your friends. If Sejanus had his way, it would stay just like that, a secret to take to his grave because he would rather suffer with you as his friend than wish for death if he lost you entirely.

He had loved you since before he could do most arithmetic successfully. Therefore, Sejanus spent his afternoons that followed a long day of classes only with you as your best friend and your best friend only. He listened to you talk about how madly in love you were with Coriolanus Snow - which you had been since the beginning of freshman year, though Sejanus only learned of this secret at the end of last semester. When he played with your hair, kissed your cheek, or slow danced with you at the numerous parties you two were dragged to, it was because you two were friends and only friends.

The feelings left Sejanus in such a frustrated state. The boy always seemed to tease Festus for drooling after several girls across all grades, but afterward, he never seemed to not feel like a complete and utter hypocrite. After all, he was in the same godforsaken boat, only with you, who never seemed to notice. Of course, Sejanus had been in other relationships to try and regrettably forget what he felt for you. He’d kissed a few girls and gone much farther with one girl last year. But it always ended the same. They’d never be you.

When you laughed, Sejanus was the one telling the joke. When you cried, he was the one holding you. When you were angry at the world, he took the blows. Sejanus didn’t mind, but he wished you would love anyone other than Coriolanus.

“You look different,” Lucy Gray stated when you sat with Sejanus in the dining hall that night. Sejanus had noticed it from the second you stopped by his dorm to say hello after a long summer apart. Your usual large-fitting wool sweater had been replaced by a slim dress, accentuating curves Sejanus only ever saw in his dreams. Your pale pink lips were painted the type of red that made boys younger than him have to change their pants. The tiny freckles dotted across your face had been skillfully covered up with what he assumed was makeup. You didn’t look like you.

“I like the new look,” Lucy Gray added after another moment of contemplation. She exchanged a knowing glance with Sejanus before he broke it off and looked down at the tray of food he had grabbed, looking less appetizing the second Lucy Gray continued speaking.

“This isn’t for Coryo, is it?” Sejanus nearly choked on his spit. When he saw you earlier, the thought had crossed his mind, but he had foolishly pushed it aside.

“Honestly, at first it was, but now I like the look. It’s grown on me,” you responded while Sejanus simply stared at his plate. He’d rather look at the food that he knew he wouldn’t be able to eat than at the scene unfolding before him as none other than the Coriolanus Snow sat next to you.

“Coryo,” you said smoothly from behind your glass. Coriolanus didn’t respond, instead solely smirking at you as if that was enough of a reply. If Sejanus had been on the receiving end of your soft voice, he wouldn’t have been able to stop the words from slipping out of his mouth. You would have gotten far more than a smirk or a simple “hey” back from him. He would’ve complimented you to the stars and back. He would have asked how your move back into your dorm had gone and if you needed any help unpacking. He would have moved heaven and earth for you to say his name with the rich undertones you had said Coriolanus’.

Sejanus had it bad. It gnawed at his soul until the only thing he could think of was his own wish for the end of his suffering. You didn’t love him, not like he loved you. On top of that, he wasn’t sure if Coriolanus would ever love you, and even if he did, he was sure you would only add to his ever-growing list of affairs. One more notch in Snow’s bedpost and one more wound on Sejanus’ heart.

One minute, Sejanus was nonchalantly stabbing a piece of chicken with his fork, and the next, he had stormed out of the dining hall. Suddenly, he found himself in the boy’s restroom nearest the hall, and before any sense of sound logic could cross his mind, he punched the wall in rage. He didn’t really know what he had been trying to accomplish with the action as his knuckles cracked with pain. He wasn’t a violent person, never had been, but perhaps he thought that it would satisfy the anger that seemed to crawl deep in his chest, burying itself between his ribs. It didn’t.

“Sejanus, you’re bleeding.” He turned to see Lucy Gray standing in the doorway, her eyes filled with concern as she took in the sight of him so disheveled.

“I’ve been worse,” he grumbled before she waved him toward the door. They walked down the twisted corridors and back to the dormitories silently. Sejanus simply followed the smaller girl and didn’t realize where they were headed until he saw the familiar stairs leading him toward his room. Lucy Gray knew better than to ask about his bleeding knuckles; if Sejanus had truly wanted her to have an explanation, he would have said so. Instead of prying, she decided to take a different approach.

“Do you need anything?” She expected him to say ‘a bandage’ or even ‘a wet cloth’. But instead, the single word that slipped from his mouth was “Vodka.” She looked at him in surprise. Sejanus was normally the most responsible out of all your friends, and seeing him choose alcohol over pretty much anything else worried Lucy Gray.

“What about something non-alcoholic? We could sneak down to the kitchens if you’d like. You didn’t eat much dinner, and I could get you something.” Sejanus only shook his head in response as he took a small cloth from one of his bags and started to wrap his injured hand. His knuckles stung as the small bit of blood soaked into the fabric, and he knew he’d likely regret not cleaning it until morning, but he didn’t have the energy to care while Lucy Gray’s eyebrows furrowed.

“We have class tomorrow. Whiskey at least would be a bit weaker,” she tried to argue, but Sejanus only repeated “Vodka” before saying a quieter “please,” which got Lucy Gray to give in. She didn’t know what was going through his head, but she worried greatly about her friend who was acting so unlike himself. Sejanus would tell her he wasn’t the only friend doing that if he could bring himself to mention you.

“You still haven’t told me why your knuckles are all wrapped up,” you stated from where you lay on a bench with Sejanus in the gardens. Your head rested on your bag, which had to be uncomfortable with the numerous textbooks he knew were shoved inside while your legs were crossed over his lap.

“And you still haven’t told me why you’re dressed like some club girl,” he retorted blandly from behind his Psychology book. You snatched the book out of his hand in response and looked over what he was reading as you responded, “It was time for a change, and why are you reading this already? The semester just started today.” Sejanus reached across your lap to grab his textbook back and slipped it into his own bag lying on the grass underneath the bench.

“If I recall correctly, you read your Chemistry book last year before we even arrived at school,” he pointed out with a questioning look while you only shrugged in response. He wasn’t sure he could recognize you like this with tight jeans hugging your legs and a dark camisole cut far too low on your chest. He could tell exactly which old girlfriend of Coriolanus’ you were trying to mimic, and it nearly made him sick, though he already felt sick from his substantial hangover.

“This,” he said suddenly, gesturing to your appearance, “is to impress Coryo. Isn’t it?”

“It isn’t that obvious, is it?” you asked before your tongue darted out to wet your cherry-red lips. You tried to get used to the feeling of lipstick on your lips over the summer, but you didn’t know if you could lie and say that you didn’t miss your old lip gloss.

“A bit,” Sejanus grimaced, and when you looked up at him, you were surprised to see him avert his gaze over to the trees surrounding the school’s grounds. You usually could read him like a book with one look at his eyes, as he could do with you, but he refused to make eye contact with you. Once, during freshman year, Coriolanus was annoying Lucy Gray so severely that all you had to do was send Sejanus one look, and he changed the subject as quickly as possible. The severance of that connection with him made your stomach churn.

“What do you think?” you questioned as you sat up, your legs falling from his lap to bump his shoulder.

“About you trying to woo Coryo? It’s not my favorite thing you’ve done-”

“No, I meant about the new me,” you interrupted to correct him. You watched as he hesitated before mumbling, “It’s not you.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?”

“I just think you shouldn’t change yourself for a guy. That’s all,” his words found a more assured tone as he tried not to cringe at the idea of accidentally letting his feelings slip out.

“I shouldn’t change myself for a guy? Look who’s talking,” you were getting defensive, and you knew it, but your words only got more heated as you continued, “I don’t think I could remember a time where you went to as many parties as you did last spring just to get in that girl’s pants. You’re not exactly the best example of not changing for someone.” The silence that followed was tense. Sejanus couldn’t remember the last time the two of you fought. There had been spats, sure. Yelling at him for minor inconveniences or getting upset when you took his words incorrectly. But this was different, and he knew that.

“Why are you so opposed anyway? Coryo is our friend. It’s not like he’s just some random guy,” you asked, the anger in your chest bubbling up your throat.

“Maybe I wouldn’t be so opposed if it was something you actually wanted versus deciding to whore yourself out to get with Coryo.” The world stopped moving when those words poured out of Sejanus’ mouth before he could stop them. He didn’t even mean them. Not really. Not in the ways that matters. Not in the ways that so clearly hurt you as you scoffed.

“I didn’t realize you thought of me that way, Sej,” his nickname crossing over your lips felt like a knife to the chest for him, but he couldn’t stop you from grabbing your bag and standing. Words seemed to escape him when it really mattered, as he opened and closed his mouth several times before watching you walk away. He could hear his words echoing through his head as he sat there dumbfounded.

He had called you a whore. He couldn’t breathe. He had called the one girl he’s ever truly loved a whore to her face. He wished he had sewn his mouth shut instead. Tears soaked into his shirt before he even realized they were falling. His hands trembled in his lap as he swore the sky was falling on top of him, suffocating him entirely.

You didn’t talk to him for days after. Every attempt to catch you in the halls was squandered by Lucy Gray, who coincidentally started to walk the two of you away faster. He knew you must have told her, but he wished she would understand that he didn’t mean to say it, that he had barely slept a wink in days as the pained look on your face replayed in his head over and over. You had trusted him so wholly, and now he had betrayed you.

You and Lucy Gray sat a bit away from him in the dining hall but still within earshot for him to hear the gunshot to his chest as Coriolanus slid into the seat next to you.

“Coffee?” he asked casually. You looked over at Coriolanus, confused.

“I beg your pardon?” a breathy laugh coming out with the smile on your face as his appearance, a confident smirk washing over his features.

“I’m asking you if you want to get coffee with me this weekend. Take a trip into town?”

Your stomach lurched, but not in the sickened way that Sejanus’ did. You two always got coffee when you went into the nearest town. He knew every cafe and exactly what order you got from each by heart.

Your heart raced, but not like the saddened way that Sejanus’ did. It felt like some cruel joke to turn and see the way your eyes lit up at Coriolanus sitting next to you.

Your cheeks flushed bright red, but not in the enraged way Sejanus’ did. What did Coriolanus want with you? Was he truly so single-minded that he wouldn’t notice you unless you changed yourself for him? You were Sejanus’ girl. You always had been. He always wanted you to be at least.

Lucy Gray’s eyebrows raised so high that her eyes nearly popped out of their sockets, but that’s when she caught sight of Sejanus. It all clicked into place as she watched how he stared at you in disbelief. He loved you. He loved you, and he was jealous of Coriolanus. She almost felt incredibly dumb for not realizing it sooner.

Sejanus’ eyes nearly seared marks into the side of your head as if he was hoping to achieve some sort of last-minute mind connection. Say no. He repeated it over and over in his head, praying you’d somehow hear him. He felt that same uneasy feeling enter his chest again as the air escaped his lungs.

“I-” you were completely taken aback by the sudden question. After all, you’d been secretly waiting for it since freshman year.

Say no. Say no. Say no, dammit. Say no. Say-

“Yes. Y-yeah, I’d love that,” you squeaked, your attempt to sound nonchalant failing miserably, but you didn’t care at the moment.

“It’s a date then. I’ll pick you up from your dorm on Saturday,” he stated before getting back up and heading out of the dining hall. You turned your attention back to Lucy Gray with a dazed smile as Sejanus’ words that had been haunting your every thought for the last few days disappeared entirely.

You were finally getting your date with Coriolanus. All the while, Sejanus was getting his heart broken right in two.

#sejanus plinth #sejanus x reader #sejanus plinth x reader #sejanus plinth x you #sejanus plinth imagine #sejanus x you #sejanus plinth fanfiction #sejanus plinth angst #thg fanfiction #the hunger games x reader #the hunger games #the hunger games series #the hunger games imagine #the hunger games fanfiction #thyme!reader

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