10 years later
"Do you want to see my snail knot, Mom?"
Carolina finished setting the table before turning to her daughter. The young girl, only five years old, was sitting on the pier, alone, not far from where Carolina stood. She was supposed to be playing with her brother and father, but the two boys were nowhere in sight. Carolina sighed, straightened the plate she had just set down, and then turned to walk toward her daughter.
"It's pronounced snell, honey," Carolina said when she reached the edge of the pier.
"Daddy said it's called a snail knot, though," Nichola said, moving her gaze between her rope and her mother with a confused look on her face.
"Well, Daddy likes to make Mommy's life harder," Carolina sighed. "It's a snell knot. Now, repeat that to me so I know you understand."
"Snell knot," the little girl smiled, one of her front teeth prominently missing.
"Perfect," Carolina smiled back. "Let's see this snell knot."
Carolina watched carefully as her daughter focused intently on the rope in her hands, eventually tying it into a perfect snell knot. When she was done, Carolina immediately erupted into cheers and tightly hugged her daughter, who became a giggling mess.
"Did I do it right?"
"Right?" Carolina asked. "It is perfect, my smart girl! It looks amazing!"
"Really?" Nichola asked, biting her lip in excitement.
"Of course!" Carolina nodded, running a hand through Nichola's hair. "You are just like me when I was your age. Thank god you're not like your father."
"HEY!" Finnick yelled just as Carolina planted a kiss on the top of her daughter's head. "I HEARD THAT!"
"GOOD!" Carolina shouted back.
Nichola laughed from beside her, and Carolina couldn't help but laugh too. The two of them watched as Finnick walked out of their house, and Carolina waited for their three-year-old to appear right behind him. But the door shut behind him, and the boy was nowhere to be found.
"So, what are my two favorite girls doing?" Finnick said when he made it to the tip of the pier.
He tried to appear at ease, but Carolina knew her husband inside and out. Internally, the man was freaking out.
"Where's Riven?" Carolina asked slowly.
"Oh!" Finnick said slowly. "We're just playing a game of hide-and-seek."
"He's lying, Mommy," Nichola said, her eyes still focused on her piece of rope. Carolina's gaze snapped back to her husband. "Daddy lost Riven."
"Finn," Carolina said.
"He is fine," Finnick said. "Trust me, I'll find him soon. This happens all the time."
"What do you mean this happens all the time?" Carolina stared at Finnick for a long moment before looking past him, calling out for her son. "RIVEN!"
"RIVEN!" Finnick shouted immediately after.
He ran inside the house again, yelling Riven's name over and over again as he did so.
Carolina snatched Nichola's hand and held onto it tightly as she jumped up from her spot on the pier and started running along the beach. They looked out to the water to see if the small boy was splashing around. When they couldn't find him there, Carolina panicked even more, the worst thoughts spinning around her mind and haunting her.
Eventually, they wrapped around the house.
"RIVEN MARSHALL ODAIR!" Carolina continued to shout. "WHERE ARE YOU?"
"GRANDPA REEF!" Nichola shouted.
Carolina felt her heart skip three beats when she caught sight of Reef walking towards her with a very welcome sight sitting on his shoulders.
"MOMMY!" Riven shouted, a bright smile on his face, completely unaware of the stress he had just caused his parents. "MOMMY, LOOK! I'M AS TALL AS A GIRAFFE!"
"Riven!" Carolina shouted, running up to her son and immediately lifting him off of Reef's shoulders and into her arms. "Oh my goodness, you had us worried sick! Finnick! He's here!"
Finnick came running out of the house seconds later, a look of relief on his face.
"I found this one wandering around on the beach on my walk over," Reef said, ruffling Riven's hair and causing the little boy to break out into a fit of giggles. "He was just fine. Just a curious little boy."
"What are you doing here so early?" Finnick asked, taking his son from Carolina's arms to hold him. "We aren't expecting guests for another hour."
"I thought the two of you would want some help in the kitchen," Reef said, walking past them. He immediately made himself at home in their kitchen, putting on the 'kiss the cook' apron that Carolina kept in the pantry specifically for him. "Making dinner for twenty is hard enough without two little ones running around."
"Thanks, Reefy," Carolina said, kissing the older man on the cheek as she passed him.
"Thanks, Reefy!" Riven repeated loudly.
Reef smiled at the small boy and then looked to Carolina for instruction. She donned her own apron, a twin to Reef's, and put him to work.
The main course was already in the oven, and three different sides were already made and in the refrigerator, ready to be heated up, leaving the rolls and dessert left to be made. Carolina knew how much Reef despised seaweed bread, so she told him to bake the cookies. As Carolina and Reef worked, Finnick cleaned the rest of their house, directing both of their children to pick up their toys as he did so.
They were nearly done when Marina and Alby arrived, Beetee following closely, and each of them equipped with a bottle of wine. As soon as Beetee and Marina walked inside, they scanned the room and began helping move all of the food to the dinner table outside. Alby just walked outside again, finding Nichola and Riven to play with.
Annie and Johanna arrived soon after with their daughter. The girl, just seven years old, was adopted by the couple a few months ago in District 7 and had yet to meet anyone in District 4. The moment Carolina saw the girl walk through the door, she took off her apron and walked over to greet the girl. However, her daughter beat her to it.
"Hello!" Nichola said, extending a hand out to her new cousin. "My name is Nichola Margaret Odair! What's yours?"
The girl looked at Nichola's hand for a long moment before taking it.
"I'm Magnolia," she said quietly.
"Do you want to play with me?" Nichola asked. At Magnolia's hesitant nod, Nichola smiled widely and started to drag her outside. Before the door shut again, Carolina could hear her daughter ask, "Do you want to be my new best friend?"
Carolina barked out a laugh and turned to Annie and Johanna.
"Now you have to move back to District 4," she said. "How could you take my daughter's best friend away from her?"
"I guess we do," Annie nodded, looking at Johanna.
Johanna looked between Carolina and Annie and rolled her eyes.
"I need a drink if we're going to have this conversation again."
Once her wife was out of earshot, Annie looped her arm through Carolina's and started walking them towards the kitchen.
"I'm slowly breaking her, I think," Annie whispered. "Just give me another year."
Carolina sent Annie a smile before putting on her apron again and getting back to work. About ten minutes later, Haymitch, Katniss, and Peeta walked through the front door, and Finnick rushed to greet them with a crying Riven in his arms. Carolina sighed, throwing her apron on the counter again and heading to help her husband.
"What happened?" Carolina asked her son, taking him from her husband.
"Here, I brought something that will cheer him right up," Haymitch said, holding out a bottle of whiskey.
Carolina sent him a scolding look.
"Not funny, Abernathy," she said, turning back to her son to wipe a tear off his face.
Haymitch laughed and walked into the kitchen, welcoming Reef loudly as he did so. Once the man was out of sight, Carolina turned back to her son, placing a soft kiss on his head.
"Apparently, Nichola wouldn't let him play with her," Finnick explained.
"THAT'S NOT TRUE!" Nichola shouted, running up to her parents and brother. "I said that he can play with Rye now! He's too little to play with Magnolia and I! We're big girls!"
Carolina sighed and turned to Riven, whose tears were finally starting to slow down.
"Honey, do you want to play with Rye?" Carolina asked.
Riven nodded slowly, raising one of his hands to wipe his face. Carolina placed him on the ground again and watched as her son walked up to Katniss and Peeta's son and asked him to play. Carolina sighed, already exhausted from the dinner that hadn't even started yet and turned to her newest guests.
"Make yourself at home," Finnick said to Katniss and Peeta, wrapping his arm around Carolina to soothe her. "Dinner is almost ready."
The younger couple smiled and walked into their living room where the rest of the guests—except for Reef and Haymitch, who were both sharing a drink in the kitchen—were gathered. The second they were out of sight, Carolina leaned into her husband and took a deep breath.
"This dinner is supposed to be fun," Finnick said, kissing the top of her head.
"I am having fun," Carolina said, meeting her husband's eyes. "I promise."
"You and I have different definitions of fun, then," Finnick sighed. "How about I deal with the rest of the cooking and setting the table, and you go relax on the couch with our guests."
"And the kids?" Carolina asked.
"I'll send Reef to deal with them," Finnick said. "You know how much he loves being around them."
"But I—"
"You deserve a break," Finnick smiled, pushing Carolina towards their living room. "Now, go spend time with our friends."
Carolina sighed but did as Finnick wished. She leaned up to peck him on the lips before walking into the living room and plopping down on the couch beside Marina.
"This is a beautiful home, Carolina," Beetee said when she sat down. "Beautiful location, too."
Carolina smiled warmly and sat up in her seat.
"Thanks," she said. "This is where Finnick and I would meet when we had to hide our relationship. The place he proposed, too. Took forever to get the rights to this land and then build the house."
"You built the house?" Katniss asked.
"Correction," Carolina said. "Finnick built the house."
"And Reef," Annie added. "I would have helped, but I was in the middle of moving to District 7."
"Which was a horrible mistake," Carolina muttered, causing Johanna to kick her leg.
"I would have helped, too," Marina added, "but I was too busy not wanting to help."
"What about you, Songbird?" Johanna asked. "Why didn't you help? It's your house."
"I'll have you know that I designed this place... kind of," Carolina laughed. "And I would have helped build it too, but I was a little busy growing two children inside of me."
In the time it took to finish dinner, Reef only had to run out of the kitchen once when Riven started crying again because his sister accidentally stepped on his toe. Carolina tried to stand up from the couch when it happened, but Marina held her down firmly so she could not move an inch.
"We're ready," Finnick finally announced, walking into the living room with a large platter in his hands.
"Time to eat!" Reef shouted from behind Finnick, moving past him with a large plate of chicken.
Everyone jumped up from the couch and made their way outside. The kids were the first to arrive, all claiming spots around the table before promptly being moved to the kids' table that was set up beside the main one.
Marina walked around the table, topping off everyone's drinks as the parents started to make plates for the children. Just as Carolina was handing Nichola her plate of food, she heard the front door slam and loud footsteps rushing over.
"We're here! Sorry, we're late. It was not my fault." Pearl shouted. Carolina turned to Lincoln, who was two steps behind his wife with a plate covered with tin foil. Based on his expression, his wife was not telling the truth. "Girls, come on."
Becky and Isla walked onto the patio seconds later, and Nichola, the social girl she was, immediately jumped up, grabbed her two friends, and dragged them to her table. As her daughter greeted the young girls, Carolina greeted her best friend.
"You made it just in time," Carolina said, taking Pearl in a hug.
"Good, good," Pearl nodded. "We brought a pie. Don't worry, Lincoln made it, not me."
"Good," Carolina laughed. "Go on, then. Make yourself a plate."
Pearl nodded, kissing Carolina on the cheek before walking past her to sit down beside her husband.
Once everyone had plates full of food and glasses filled to the brim, Reef stood up, clinking his glass with a fork.
"I want to make a toast, as I do every year," he began, raising his glass. Everyone lifted their glasses as well, placing all of their attention on the older man. "To all of the people we've lost, who would be extremely proud of the world we have created and the lives we have brought into it. And to all of you, who have lost and created, mourned and loved, and started anew, rising to something greater than yourselves. I could not be more proud of everyone in this room."
Carolina smiled sweetly at Reef, reaching out for Finnick's hand underneath the table. Finnick took her hand immediately, squeezing it tightly.
"Happy 4th of July, everyone," Finnick said.
His words were bittersweet, still holding the weight of what that day truly meant, despite the games ending ten years ago. The rest of the group had smiles with dimmed lights behind their eyes, but as the conversation over the food picked up, they started to become brighter.
Carolina gave her husband's hand one last squeeze before digging into her own meal. She spoke with her closest friends—her family—and ate the delicious meal around them. However, she couldn't help herself from listening in on the children's conversation at their table.
"I think the 4th of July is my favorite holiday," Nichola said cheerfully to Magnolia. "What's yours?"
Her daughter's words made Carolina sigh, closing her eyes for a moment before opening them again. She was calm. Happy, even.
She realized she finally did it.
When people looked at her, they no longer thought of her as a manipulative tribute in the Hunger Games or the wife of a powerful, horrible man.
She was just a woman, who lived in the house she had dreamed about for years with a husband she loved with everything in her. She was a mother to two beautiful children that were troublemakers but perfect in every way. She was a friend to the most amazing people in all of Panem. She was a woman who occasionally loved to hum a tune, not a Siren.
And most importantly, she was a survivor, who finally found her peace with the world.
Not many people could say that.
And while the dark memories of what had happened may be held inside of Carolina's mind for the rest of her life, the good that had come from it made it bearable. The good that allowed her children to grow up in a world where they didn't have to be afraid, where they didn't have to be ripped away from their home, where they didn't have to be strong or dangerous or deadly.
She was a part of creating a world where her children were allowed to be children.
In years to come, Nichola and Riven would hear thousands of stories of the people who meant the world to their parents.
They would hear about the strength of their grandparents.
The dreams of Marsh Rosebloom.
The mischievousness of their Uncle Charlie.
The love shared by Mags Flanagan.
The protective natures of Cashmere and Gloss Nicholo.
The sacrifices made by Fletch Ambershire.
But for now, they will learn to love the people sitting around them, laughing and smiling, and they will feel something that no adult at that table was allowed to feel at their age.
Peace.
It's okay. Everything is going to be okay. Carolina thought to herself as she looked around at her family with a soft smile.
And for the first time in her life, Carolina Seymour-Odair meant it.