"Evelyn Brinley, better known as Lady Red, victor of the 72nd Hunger Games. Won her games at 15."
"Why Lady Red?"
"Because she always wears red. Oh, and she won her games by burning the remaining tributes alive."
✮
"𝑮𝒊𝒓𝒍 𝒐𝒏 𝒇𝒊𝒓𝒆? 𝑯𝒐𝒘 𝒄...
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THE SIX MONTHS LEADING UP TO EVELYN'S VICTORY TOUR WERE NOT AS PEACEFUL AS THE CAPITOL PROMISED IT WOULD BE. When she was alone, the voices of the tributes haunted the empty hallways of her house, and when she closed her eyes she could see their faces. Some of them were angry, some of them were in despair, and others were numb. The face she saw the most was the one face she never wanted to see again: Joshua's.
The victor only saw him for a few seconds, because the moment his face appeared she jolted awake, but that was enough for her. She couldn't escape him, or anyone else. She'd never escape them; at least that was what Evan and Sasha told her. And so far, their words were true. No matter how drunk or high she got, the images never faded. She never turned the heater on anymore, even now when it was cold outside because of the fire. The hot air stung her face, and it reminded her of the flames. And with the flames came the careers. Their mutilated bodies, the smell of charred hair and flesh. It was all awful.
And the screams, the screams were the worst of all. Dozens of screams pierced the silence when it was dark out, and Evelyn couldn't get rid of them. She'd curl up in a ball, pressing her hands flat to the sides of her head but she could still hear them. The victor would even try to outscream them, but that would always make it worse.
Her nightly torture wasn't a secret to anyone in the district. The houses closest to her could hear her screams and parents would make up stories to tell their children. That was what they usually did when a victor went mad. The kids were already scared enough because of the reaping, and knowing what happened after the games would only make that fear worse. It was better to lie to them. It was better to let them enjoy the little childhood they had while they still could.
It took Evelyn a couple of months to forgive her brother for what he had done. Evan left her alone during those couple of months, and Evelyn moved into her own house, but eventually, the house got lonely and sad. The victor still technically lived in her own house, but she spent most of her time in Evan or Sasha's house.
Evelyn liked Sasha's family, which was just his father and his little sister, but they were sweet. They didn't give her dirty looks as some people in District 8 did. Some families still hated her for winning instead of the kid, but most of them had already forgiven her for it.
Her brother's house smelled like weed and rum as Evelyn watched the two boys smoke and drink. She was used to the lingering smell; this was what they did every day. They'd wake up, go down to the market if they needed food, and then get stoned until they couldn't remember their own name.
Sasha looked at her and raised his glass, "Come on, Lyn, join us."
Evan answered before she could, waving Sasha off, "Dude, don't- don't do that. Don't offer my sister a drink."
"Come on, Evan, loosen up it's just a few shots."
"She's 15, Sash."
Sasha rolled his eyes, "Fine, whatever. Sorry, Evelyn. I guess you can kill people but you're still too young to drink. And apparently, you've never had a drink before."
