Katniss had never expected returning to the games to be humiliating.
Unsettling, and traumatic? Of course. Angering - the very concept of it making her livid? Not a surprise, either.
But not humiliating. She knew she was strong, knew she was powerful, knew she had a good chance of winning. She had planned to let Peeta win, the second time around, much as he had helped her to, the time before. But they'd announced another shock; the participants would not only be former players, they would only be female participants.
Katniss didn't really see the point - gender didn't affect your ability to fight, to hunt, to kill. But according to Haymitch, it was a hot topic in the Capitol. As if making people kill enough wasn't entertaining enough.
It was just before she entered the arena where the last rule had been announced. She'd been waiting for her battlesuit, in the chamber below the arena. Her dark olive skin was bare, her hair in a braid over her shoulder. The last time, she'd been embarrassed at everyone seeing her, this time, she stood confident, she'd been through worse.
"Games begin in two minutes," a tinny, computerised voice announced over the speakers.
Katniss looked around for her stylist, saw no-one. Eventually, she asked, "When do I get my clothes?"
"You don't," a game-planner said, not looking up from a digital tablet, "New, last minute rule. You - the girl on fire - get an advantage with your costumes. You're going to go nude." And with that, she was guided onto the platform.
Katniss struggled a little, but rose anyway, into the bright sunlight of the arena. She'd thought she was ready, but... It seemed not.
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