Chapter Text
He was sitting in the filthy, rattling train carriage and the stench of 12 still lingered in his nose seemingly out of nowhere. Or maybe it wasn't out of nowhere, maybe the smell lingered on his clothes, he thought to himself. He sniffed himself discreetly, as if, at that moment, he wasn’t alone in the compartment. It wasn’t the clothes, he thought, although he made a mental note to himself to get rid of them anyway. After all, he was a different person now, and needed a new attire to befit this newer, better version of himself.
As he looked out of the window, he noticed the train was closer to Capitol with the obvious change of scenery outside. In that moment, he toyed with the idea that the stench might have gotten under his skin, nails, and into his hair from living in that hole for such a long time. Or maybe, he thought, it might have stuck to him from laying with that wildling. Maybe she imprinted her dirty self on him. On his alabaster, Capitol skin. To him, it was a sort of a reminder of what he had to leave behind in 12 and of what he was about to become now.
He shook off that idea quickly, he had decided not to think about her again, didn’t he? And although it had been a difficult task back when he was in 12 with her, now that there was a possibility of her being dead, he didn’t need to think of her anymore. The issue had truly resolved itself. Or had it?
He smirked a bit when the train finally rolled into the gates of the Capitol and he truly started to feel like he might finally be home, in a civilized, clean environment. There were some exceptions here and there, like the classmates from other districts, but none of them were from dirty parts of Panem like Lucy was. He slicked his short hair back as if he still had his curls and wiped his hands into his pants as the speed of the train blurred the surroundings and finally arrived at the train station. Suddenly the reality of the arrival hit him, the bittersweet sensation of finally coming back home.
He got up from his seat, took his backpack and threw it over his shoulder, looked behind to make sure that he did not leave anything on his seat and started walking through the train carriage to find the exit. He looked out of the windows while walking through the train and noticed his Grandma’am standing outside with Tigris. Oh, Tigris. He hadn’t really thought of what it would be like to see her face again. From the distance, she looked worse than usual. Skinnier, more worn out which didn’t help her bland features. He hoped she wouldn’t ask much, but he knew she would. On the other hand, Grandma’am never really asked anything, she knew better not to. Smart woman that one.
He opened the door of the carriage and stepped down the stairs as both women ran quickly towards him.
“Oh, Coriolanus!” His grandma’am screamed as she wrapped her arms around him tightly. He hugged her back, putting his head almost against her shoulder, and the smell of her old clothes and expensive perfume hit his nose. He would never admit it out loud to anyone, let alone to himself, but in a way, he had missed her. She always took care of him, always supported him, and never dared to ask about his motives or emotions.
He leaned away from the hug and looked at Tigris who stood next to her. “Hello Tigris.” He said with a soft smile, but he quickly noticed her confusing expression. Was she angry with him? Had she figured it all out? He couldn’t pinpoint what was going on inside her head, but it sure looked as if she was disappointed and frankly also a bit scared.
“Hi Coryo.” She suddenly smiled a little and hugged him quickly, her small bony figure almost being too painful and uncomfortable to embrace.
While they pulled away from each other he looked away, not feeling very comfortable with holding eye contact with his cousin. Maybe she didn't receive him with enthusiasm, because she could smell the stench of coal on him. On the other hand, the clothes she was wearing didn't look, feel or smell any better and so he quickly released his worries.
“How have you been, my dear?” His grandma’am asked as she completely ignored the awkwardness of the interaction between her two grandchildren. “You look so strong, so handsome...” She said with affection in her voice as she looked at him proudly and pat him on the chest. “Doesn’t he, Tigris?”
He and his grandmother both looked at his cousin now with expectation. The girl gave in and nodded. “Yes, grandma’am, he looks very handsome.”
He was almost offended by the tone Tigris used right then. What was her issue, he thought. The fake smile, the strange welcome, maybe she was jealous of his adventures. Or maybe she knew about Sejan.. no she didn’t. He brushed that thought away, attributed her behavior to jealousy. After all, she was never going to get out of the Capitol. Not that it had been something that had charmed him too much, but still, he was way more travelled and experienced now, than she ever would be. Poor girl. He found her jealousy a bit pathetic, but he could try to have sympathy, she was family after all.
“I am glad to be home, dear Grandma’am. How have you two been?” He looked at them with fake interest as they kept walking towards the vehicle that would take them home. He made sure to send them most of the money he made in 12, so that they wouldn’t get evicted from their apartment while he was away but otherwise, he didn’t really care what those two were up to. Their wellbeing and lives were owed to his graciousness, and to him, it was insulting when he felt they didn’t really acknowledge all of the sacrifices he had done for them. Sure Tigris worked too, but he didn’t care for her silly little designer job. The money she brought home didn’t buy them lavish food, neither it got them rid of mice, so it was of no importance to him. He knew, one day, he would have to help her land a better job. Maybe she could be a Hunger Games stylist one day, the stinking clothes the tributes brought from their Districts were horrendous.
“..so we repaired a couple of the holes.” As he was carried away in his own thoughts, his grandma’am had been babbling the whole time, so now, he would have to pretend he was listening.
“That is brilliant grandmother.” He nodded as they had arrived to the vehicle. “I will just put my things into the trunk, you two can get inside, it’s covered.” Gaul offered him this vehicle with a driver, since she expressed it would be unacceptable for a man of his position to be seen moving around with his family on foot. He put his things into the trunk and closed it carefully, then got inside into the back of the car with his Grandma’am and Tigris.
“Is this car yours, Coryo?” Tigris asked him with a strange tone in her voice as she looked around the interior of the large vehicle, its’ black leather seats with red threaded seams, wooden ceiling and details and a small fridge.
“No, Tigris, this is our car now. And that,” he gestured towards the driver in the front seat, “is our driver Remus.” He leaned back into the leather seat with a proud smirk on his face as the driver smiled back at them. This was an accomplishment for Coriolanus. No more walking around like a rat in the rain. They could parade their car, go around Capitol with a sense of pride and superiority.
“Would you ladies care for a drink?” Coriolanus offered as the driver started the car. He reached into the small fridge and pulled out a champagne bottle with three glasses as he looked at the two women.
His grandmother was clearly still in awe from her surroundings, so she just looked at him and nodded with her mouth open. “Oh, my dear grandson, Coriolanus. You must have done so well in District 12.”
He smirked and looked at Tigris, expecting her to say yes as well, although she didn’t look as thrilled as her grandmother. “Umm, no, thank you, Coryo. I don’t really drink champagne.”
His eyes narrowed. What was she thinking? What was this ungrateful ugly duckling playing at, he thought. Her life expectancy grew with his achievements, not the other way around. Would it hurt for her to be thankful for once?
“Tigris, you must toast with us. To our future together.” He said sharply and poured all three of the glasses half full, completely ignoring the fact that she had refused him. She was not a bright person, he reminded himself not to be cruel to her and to try to relate to this inferior human being. Again, it was surely just her jealousy, that was making her act this way.
He handed the two women their engraved crystal glasses and lifted his glass while looking at them. “To this new era of our lives. Don’t you worry, my gentle beloved women. I will finally be able to take care of all of us properly, provide you with whatever you need and desire. I am glad to be back home, to be with you two Snow women. After all, like my father had always said, Snow lands on top.”
His grandmother raised her glass, and Tigris hesitantly followed in her stead. “To us.” Their grandma’am said and Tigris copied after her grandmother, as she looked straight at him.
As they all took the first sip and Tigris looked right into his eyes, he noticed and looked back with a warning and dangerous stare.
I am the one in charge now, he thought to himself as he looked out the window again, gazing at the streets of the Capitol, aware of Tigris’ eyes stabbing into the side of his face, as she was staring at him with a frightened look.
As the car finally approached the old, flaked away apartment building their modest flat was in, he couldn’t stop feeling sentimental as memories started to flood his mind. The good ones, of playing with Tigris outside, or watching his father come home, and the bad ones, of the two cousins eating paste together to satisfy their hunger or hiding from starved out people who turned to cannibalism.
One of those people was Nero Price, now rich and respected Capitol “fat cat”, whose daughter, Persephone, studied at the Academy with Coriolanus. He made sure to avoid the both of them as much as possible although he used to find her attractive back when they were younger. When he was leaving the Capitol, she actually went and visited his apartment with Festus and Lysistrata, to say goodbye, although in retrospect it felt as if they had only visited him to laugh at his misery of being sent away.
He got out of the car, quickly running to the other side to give his grandmother a hand and help her get out as well. “Oh, thank you, Coriolanus. “ His grandmother smiled at him, took his now rough hand and climbed out with difficulty. Her struggle troubled him and made him a little irritated. Witnessing the woman she once was, strong and caring for the two cousins, now weak and fragile, was harrowing, to say the least. It felt like everything had changed while he was gone. Well, everything except the state of their apartment.
As they slowly walked up the stairs, keeping the pace of their grandma’am so that she wouldn’t feel bad for walking tardily, the stench of their old apartment hit his face. Although, the scent brought back a tender feeling of living there with his parents, it also brought him back to reality. The whole place was covered with eviction notes of different sorts, the once luxurious hallway and its lavish chandeliers covered with dust and a rat running across the doorway into the living room.
“I can see nothing much has changed here,” he said with a disgusted frown on his face as he looked at his grandmother and cousin standing in the hallway while they were taking off their coats.
“You had sent us a lot of money, Coryo, but the prices of rent have risen, and it barely covered the lease. But now, finally we at least had something to eat. Apples, potatoes, a ham from time to time.” Tigris stroked his arm with an almost thankful look as they walked into the main living room together.
He looked around the room, at the beautiful stained-glass décor with images of his family and smiled a little. “What state is the roof in, Tigris?” He looked at her again and sat down at the big table to look around and consider the room, to carefully plan the renovation. It was something he had always wanted to do, and now with the Plinth money, he would finally be able to bring his family home back into its original state.
“Well when it comes to my room, the hole in one of the walls has gotten worse and the roof is ruined, so when it’s raining, it pours right in. The buckets can no longer contain it,” Tigris said. “And in your and grandma’ams rooms the roof is still holding up, but the rat situation is worse than it used to be. But the north wing, where your parents’ quarters once were is worse than before. It’s no longer accessible because one of the wooden beams ruptured and it had blocked the hallway.” She sighed and put the palm of her hand on the back of his hand. “I am proud of you for being so ambitious and strong willed. With this pace, you might just become the president someday.” She said jokingly, chuckled at her comment and went into the kitchen “to bring in some food”.
First of all, how dare she make this into a joke, he thought to himself. Of course, she couldn’t know what his plan for the future might be, but still? Of course he would one day be the president, duh? And second of all, he thought, how the hell would he be able to get used to the poor meals that his family was forced to eat. And he didn’t even want to think of Tigris’ awful cooking.
She was swiftly back with something that didn't look entirely edible on one of the dirty plates. She set the plate in front of him, the tangy smell of the food hitting his nose. "What is this Tigris?" He asked as he looked at her with a fake smile. "It smells... nice."
Tigris smiled back at him and started to cut the meal in her plate. "A squirrel, your favorite. I bought it a couple days ago so that you had something you like when you'd arrive."
He gagged at the thought of eating that and started to poke around into the food.
As he took the first bite, he made a mental note to himself, to hire a cook for the family, so that they wouldn’t have to eat Tigris’ rubber meals ever again.