Tinder - Chapter III:

-----

The three of them, Katniss, Solanum and Prim, decided to skip school to gather dandelions in the meadow near the fence.

It was fun. The activity was relaxing and it wasn't like she was in a hurry to wade into the forest, so it was...nice.

It was nice to spend a day with her sisters for once without the awkwardness and hesitance that almost always seem to mar their interactions with one another. Since all of them were focused on getting as many dandelions as they could, there weren't much talking to be had, but both of her sister's presence brought enough comfort.

It made her remember why she loved this second chance at life in the first place.

Seeing their relieved smiles - seeing the tension that hung over their too young shoulders temporarily disappear made living and surviving all worth it.

"Isn't this amazing Sol? There's so much food!" Prim commented happily, awed at the thought.

"Yeah. It's...it's good." Solanum smiled hesitantly. "Katniss was really smart."

Prim beamed. "Yeah."

Katniss turned to look at her exasperatedly for a moment before glancing away. "I got the idea from you Sol. Don't sell yourself short."

Solanum felt her cheeks warm at the sentiment.

Prim giggled good-naturedly before continuing on in a somber manner. "Won't the Peacekeepers get mad at us because we're skipping school?"

"No, it's okay." Solanum assured, ducking down to add more dandelions in her bucket. "The Peacekeepers here are pretty lenient though we should take care not to stay near the fence for too long."

Both stopped in their tracks for a moment before Katniss joked offhandedly. "It sounds like you're used to doing this, Sol."

Solanum just laughed in response - scratching the side of her cheek awkwardly. "Um. So what are we going to do with this, Katniss?"

She winced at the lame diversion, but stuck with it despite the dubious look shot by her older sister.

That was close.

-----

Solanum started skipping school when she was six.

After witnessing and understanding the technicalities of the so-called Hunger Games, Solanum almost immediately started training to get back to her previous self's form. She already realized that the odds were fairly stack against her family at the moment and, although considerably more fortunate as the others, she couldn't leave it to chance. She had to do as much as she could to protect her family.

Solanum remembered thinking with blood running down her knuckles and her thin 6-year old body trembling in exhaustion from a particularly intense training session that she'll do anything and everything, all and beyond, if it meant Solanum wouldn't be alone again - her pack wouldn't die on her again.

(Even if it meant that the loss of chakra - a huge part of who she was before - made the goal more insurmountable than it already was.)

There were times, countless times where she almost gave up. Gave it all up because it hurt too much. She was fragile. Her body was weak - pathetic. And she wasn't even sure if her training was bearing fruit.

She sometimes asked, with her legs burning as if they were about to fall off, her body scraped and bleeding, and her heart beating like drums. Why was she even doing this? Why was she even putting up with this torture? Why her?

Why?

Solanum's just a kid - her disturbing dreams of another life aside. She was her own person. She didn't have to carry Kakashi's burden and self-blame for things she couldn't control. Why was she being subjected to this?

It wasn't her duty. She didn't need to do this because there were numerous families who survived long enough. There were others who lived - not comfortably, no with poverty encompassing even those in the nicer parts of District 12 - but they managed not to get sucked into the twisted farce the Capitol was playing.

It should be enough. It should be-

But her family was in the poor part of the district.

She had sisters eligible for tesserae and would eventually put their names in that bastard of a lottery.

She was one year younger than her sister. There's this one year wherein Katniss could be picked or chosen and Solanum couldn't volunteer no matter how much she persisted to. Katniss - her brash older sister - could get killed and she fucking couldn't do anything about it.

She didn't even want to think about Prim because the thought made her want to puke.

They could eventually die of poverty, starvation or rule-breaking if the Hunger Games didn't get to them first.

It wasn't-

The assurance wasn't close to enough. As long as the Capitol's reigning, it never would be.

Solanum didn't need to do anything, but she had to. Solanum knew that she had the smarts, the grit, the experience to do something about their situation if needed be.

Her dreams, regardless if they true or not, were there for a reason.

So Solanum trained, sometimes went to school and acted like everything was fine, all the while trying her best to hide her scars and callouses. With Gai as her inspiration and the look-a-like he took as an apprentice - Lee, she managed to push through everything by sheer will power.

Because those two could do it - they're living proof that, despite their weaknesses and deficiencies, they could get strong without ninjutsu or genjutsu. And if they could then damn it, so could she.

Solanum stood by this routine and although there were some snags, she made it.

She couldn't recreate the awesome feats her previous self can do, but she was pretty damn proud of what she reached now. Not quite jounin level, but chuunin at least.

More than enough to beat a civilian several times her mass or age.

More than enough to go to toe to toe with the Peacekeepers assigned throughout the village.

More than enough to win if she ever had to.

-----

There was a thump as the knife Katniss gave her met its mark. The rabbit was dead before it hit the ground.

Solanum smiled brightly. Moving over to the other traps she set an hour ago, she was gratified to see similar small animals were caught on its hold. At least two could be kept for themselves and the others sold in District 12's black market, The Hob. They needed it too since Prim's clothes were growing too small for her and it wouldn't hurt to splurge - as much as a impoverished family could anyway - with the current bout good luck she had in hunting.

She got a good haul today. Katniss would be appeased at least.

Shaking her head fondly, Solanum let the familiar motion of disabling traps and neck-breaking wash over her. As the morbid sound of cracking filled the forest, she fought to keep her breathing normal and let her mind wander from the action.

(She would get over it - squeamishness and all - in time.)

(She survived the forest, after all, and, if she still did falter from the lack of familiarity - of how her body couldn't heed the motions her mind screamed it should - well, it was a working progress.)

(...somehow. If her definition of progress translated to pushing it all down and gritting her teeth to do the deed, then that's just semantics.)

(Besides, Solanum did it before when she was about four as Kakashi. It shouldn't be any different now.)

It would be better to mull over the next scheme she would concoct to rung out another concession from her older sister regarding the hunt. The arrangement they had now - keep the fence in sight, not too far from where Katniss was comfortable with - was fine but it could be better.

Her skills could reach leaps and bounds if she could find better resisting opponents.

She wondered if encountering a bear would be too far-fetched.

All that meat and battle experience.

It would be glorious.

Although Solanum wouldn't probably set foot on the forest for about one year give or take courtesy to her surprisingly overprotective older sister.

Katniss was...difficult to handle. It took weeks before Solanum could carry a knife and for Katniss to leave her and go on her own way.

It would be frustrating if Solanum didn't find the hovering endearing.

(It shouldn't be a surprise how Katniss seemed insistent on holding her hand through everything since Katniss acted the same with Prim, but getting the same treatment was a pleasant revelation. Solanum was glad her pestering paid off.)

(Even if hearing voices of the people she once knew - talking to her and conversing as if they were truly there, concerned her a bit. They sometimes appeared too, with horrifying injuries to boot. Solanum concluded it probably stemmed from the images her previous self tortured himself with.)

(It wasn't - it wasn't very pretty.)

(Solanum wondered if she finally snapped whenever she hears Rin's laugh or see in the corner of her eyes a pair of blond and pink heads. It probably wasn't healthy - how she's dealing with this - but she knew she wouldn't stop.)

(She couldn't bring herself to care for her sanity or health, if it meant she can see her sisters' satisfied smiles. Knowing that they could eat - that they wouldn't starve this time - does wonders in brightening up their faces.)

(Solanum admitted she was getting kind of addicted to the sight.)

She brushed off the dirt on her knees and walked to the tree where they kept their weapons.

As far she knew, Katniss was only aware of her basic trapping skills.

Solanum hummed.

She wondered if showing her talent in knife-throwing would work.

(Obito said it would, but she's never too sure. The dead-last loved lame excuses, after all, and it was admittedly fun baiting him with taunts like the old times. Solanum could bring herself to look at him when he laughed in that way of his, because well-)

(It was warm enough to make up for his half-crushed body.)

-----

Solanum smiled slightly as she saw the side of her house with pots of herbs and medicine. She was waiting for Katniss and Prim. They were venturing outside the fence again today and currently, she was enjoying the sight of their mother bustling around energetically as she organized her wares around the house.

It was a far cry from the broken woman that stared blankly at the wall for what seemed like a lifetime ago.

"We're going, Mama." Prim called out cheerfully as she give her mother a kiss. She turned to Solanum with a smile. "Come on Sol. Katniss already there."

"Bye Mama." Solanum said softly as she followed Prim to the door.

Her mother wrung her hands in worry before patting her shoulder gently. "Be safe."

Solanum nodded. "Of course."

...

..

.

This wouldn't work.

Solanum shook her head as Prim cried at the dead animal that Katniss caught with her bow.

"We should heal it, Katniss." Prim pleaded. "Take it to Mama."

Katniss frowned. "We need to kill animals so we can eat Prim."

"But I..." Prim ducked her head in shame. "I don't..."

"I can take care of her Katniss." Solanum interjected. "She could just collect herbs and fruits. Just focus on hunting for now."

Katniss looked at them worriedly before nodding. As she moved deeper into the woods, she called out. "Okay. Let's meet in the clearing, Sol. You know where it is."

Solanum shifted her feet nervously.

('You should comfort her, Kakashi-sensei.' A high pitched voice whispered and Solanum - well Solanum could only bit back a sigh and awkwardly rub Prim's back in comfort, trying not cringe from the flinch of surprise her sister made before she relaxed in Solanum's hold.)

"You don't have to do this Prim." She started. "You can just stay with Mama, you know. Katniss and I could handle the workload."

"I want to help." Prim whispered, after a few seconds of silence. "I don't want to be a burden."

Solanum frowned. "You're never a burden. Prim."

Prim avoided her eyes and looked down. "But I'm not as good as you or Katniss." She wrung her hands in discomfort. "I hate how I couldn't- I couldn't even do anything right, Sol." She whispered. "You tried to teach me before but-"

Solanum stiffened. "That's not your fault. I'm sorry if I made you feel that way, but it was never my intention. I just-"

"You didn't, Sol." Prim protested. "It's not the problem. I knew you were doing it with my best interests in mind, but I - what use do I have?"

Solanum's hand paused before she continued slowly - feeling out the words she wanted to say carefully. "You're my baby sister Prim. Mine and Katniss'. What you can't do doesn't define you and whoever you are now- it's enough." She smiled slightly, her eyes falling familiarly into half-crescents like they've did before. "You're enough as you are. Just - don't stress about it too much. It's going to be fine."

"Okay." Prim finally whispered after several seconds of silence.

Solanum sighed and relaxed. "You're better than us Prim. Your innocence keep us going." She pulled Prim forward - walking towards the place where edible plants grew. "I'll show you which plants we can eat. It's going to help Mama's apothecary shop, see." She patted Prim's head. "That's enough help, you know."

Prim looked at her searchingly before squeezing her hand gently. "Thank you, Sol."

"It's nothing." Solanum avoided her sister's eyes and ignored her former genins' giggles at her blush.

(Precocious brats.)

-----

Solanum's tightened her hand on Katniss' own as they crouched, along with Gale - a hunter they occasionally meet and trade knowledge with - behind the trees. The scream of the girl running earlier was chilling as she sobbed over her companion's impaled body, and the three of them of them could only look on helplessly as a hovercraft appeared and hauled the two bodies up in the air.

There was utter silence as the transportation disappeared before the forest continued on its activities.

She- she needed to get her sister out of here.

"We're going home, Katniss." Solanum said calmly as she pulled the dark haired girl to her feet. "We're going home." She stared at her sister's troubled eyes intently and murmured. "We're going to forget about this and sell the meat we caught."

"We could have helped them, Everdeen." Gale's voice rang out, aggravated for a reason Solanum couldn't fathom.

Solanum tightened her hand on Katniss' own. "What do you mean, Hawthorne?"

Gale gritted his teeth. "It's like you didn't even care they were killed. Forgetting them as if-"

"If we moved," She interrupted, side-eyeing Gale carefully. "the Capitol would have captured us too." Her lips quirked in a bitter smile. "It was the most logical thing to do." She rubbed her sister's back as Katniss threw up beside the trees. "I suppose you already knew that though, since you were the one who heard her first."

The teen's face twisted. "You were the one she called out to, you -"

"Don't finish that sentence, Gale." Katniss whispered as she valiantly try to regain her composure. "I appreciate the help you sometimes give us, but don't take your anger out at Sol when you didn't do anything too."

Gale flinched as if slapped. He turned back abruptly and didn't say a word as he walked away.

That's okay. Solanum always knew he didn't like her for some reason or the other. But Katniss-

Solanum knew Gale was her friend. He made Katniss smile sometimes.

"You didn't have to do that Katniss." Solanum said blankly. "He's your friend. You could have made up with him after that."

Katniss went back to her feet. "He's not. We just have an agreement." She curled her fingers on Solanum's arms almost painfully. "You're my sister - family. He's not getting away with calling you names when he's being a hypocrite."

Solanum nodded, pushing the emotions the reply evoked for later inspection, and ran with her older sister back home.

-----

Time passed by.

There were some problems here and there, but her family had food. They were relatively content, if not happy.

Then the ball dropped and everything went to hell.

She should have known it wouldn't last long.

Solanum was fifteen, Katniss was sixteen and Prim's twelve - now eligible for the Hunger Games.

Her blood ran cold when Effie Trinket, District 12's escort, disgustingly cheerful, announced. "Primrose Everdeen"

It was time.

Solanum raised her hand and, along with Katniss who pushed her way to Prim, shouted defiantly. "I volunteer as tribute!"

Prim's anguished cries echoed around the square as silence reigned. Katniss looked at her - horrified. "Sol." Her older sister whispered.

Solanum made her way to the two. "I volunteer." She repeated - her voice clear and strong.

For her family.

"I volunteer as tribute."