#lucy gray baird: the mockingjay who started it all | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

lovingonryles · 5 months

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when the mockingjay sings

guess who’s back after two months 🤭 i’m so sorry y’all omfg 😭 Anyway, hope y’all have seen tbosas (if you haven’t, IT IS SO GOOD, please watch it.) take some of my current gf <33

pairing: lucy gray baird x fem!reader

summary: your girlfriend comes back as the victor of the 10th hunger games, but doesn’t stay for long

warnings: established relationship, angst, hurt/comfort, cursing, going off the movie since I haven’t read the book yet

word count: 1,259, should take about ten minutes to read (longest to date!!)

listen to: stubborn love by the lumineers

IT WAS EASY falling in love with lucy gray baird. her charming voice, her sweet smile, her beautiful, beautiful, face, her personality, really all of it made you fall face first for her.

her lust shone over you so easily. she could ask you to jump off a cliff, and you would happily do it just to make her proud. that’s all you ever wanted from her. proudness. acceptance.

so it was really no surprise for lucy gray or the covey when you tried to volunteer for her at the reaping.

you remember the firm hand on your forearm, the one that belonged to your girlfriend after you just pleaded to go in place of her. “don’t.” you gave her a look of anger, eyebrows knitted.

“‘don’t?’ you expect me to let you die out there?” you could see tears welling up in her eyes, threatening to spill out.

and it killed you. this wasn’t the bold lucy gray you knew. the one who would scare you from behind while you were making breakfast. the one who always kissed you in front of your family.

no, this was a different lucy gray. her voice began to shake. “i’m sorry.” and with that, she was gone, the gentle touch that was once on your arm a near punishment for being in love with someone so intricate.

the next few days were hell for you. You couldn’t eat, go out to your family, anything. all you could do was sleep. and you didn’t dare turn on your tv and watch the games.

so to get news that your girlfriend was not only the victor, but also well was overjoying to you.

the day lucy gray came back was the happiest of your life. the first second she saw you, she immediately sprinted, jumping up into your arms.

you giggled, running your hands through her hair. “i knew you could do it,” you whispered, tears of joy starting to form.

“ya, and i knew you couldn’t,” she whispered back, laughing at her own words. you couldn’t help but laugh, too.

everything returned relatively back to normal; you’d come to her shows, you two would hang out every day and walk in the woods, and you’d sit with the covey.

until one day.

you sat at the hob, waiting for your girlfriend to perform as usual. she had just gone off stage for a brief moment. it was taking longer than usual, though, and you started to grow concerned.

after a while, lucy gray and her band returned back on stage, but something seemed off about the singer.

you knew your girlfriend well, and you knew that this wasn’t the normal her. she appeared to be fine on the surface, singing her songs with a smile on her face, but you knew better.

so, when the performance ended, you immediately ran to catch up with lucy gray. she was two steps ahead of you, immediately sprinting to your seat.

she quickly rested her hands on your face. &ldquoi love you and i’m sorry.” she pecked your lips and just like that, she was gone, running out of the hob. no time for you to ask what she meant.

days had passed, and to your fear, you hadn’t heard from your girlfriend. no sign of her around town.

you went to the Covey, asking them if they’d seen her. nobody had seen lucy gray since the day at the hob. and allegedly, two people had shown up dead at the hob the same night your girlfriend ran off.

great.

you knew fate was going to catch up to you eventually after your girlfriend survived the games. so you accepted you’d never hear from her again.

you hid in your room, only coming out to use the bathroom or eat. you cried endlessly those few days.

lucy gray baird was your everything, and she was gone. of course she fucking was.

11:30 AM IS when you woke the next day. truly, you woke up at a much earlier time, but you didn’t get up until the cons of staying in bed outweighed the pros.

you slugged into the kitchen, going to fix yourself a cup of coffee. your family was already out at work or school, so you were all alone. nothing to disturb you.

until you heard a knock on the door. nobody ever knocked.

you walked to the door, not knowing who was there or why they were. you slowly opened the door just an inch, just to take a peak at who was there.

you couldn’t believe your eyes. you thought you must be hallucinating from all the sleep, or maybe still dreaming. maybe you never got out of bed at all. “lucy gray?”

you quickly pulled her into your house, making sure to lock the door right after. before either of you could get anything out, you wrapped her in a tight hug.

it was a longing one. you thought lucy gray was dead, and she thought you’d never get the opportunity to see her again. the hug seemed to last ages, only being broken to litter each other’s faces in kisses.

“where the fuck have you been, lucy gray?” you asked, inviting her to sit down on the couch next to you.

“hiding. it’s a long story.” she took a seat next to you, leaning her head on your shoulder.

“did you kill mayfair?” you asked, genuine concern in your eyes. “i’m not mad if you did-”

“no, no, i didn’t,” she interrupted, reassuring you. “i was just too closely related to the situation. and then…other things happened, so i can’t stay for long.” your face turned into one of confusion.

“what happened?”

“i just said it was a long story.” she laughed, prompting you to laugh after her. that laugh sent you spiraling.

“well, at least tell me where you’re hiding.”

“up in the woods. gonna head up north here soon. i just came to visit to let you know i’m still here.”

“let me come with you. please.” you were pleading. you didn’t know how much longer you could live without your girlfriend. having to deal with the past few days for the rest of your life would end you.

“it’s not safe, (name)-”

“then why’d you even come? just to taunt me?” you fought back.

“no. i’m just saying you can’t come.”

“you have to let me. please. these past few days have been hell without you, lucy gray. i can’t have you stripped away from me a second time. i didn’t know much you meant to me until you got reaped, and right after you came back you left again. if you don’t let me go with you i might actually die.”

her face softened during your confession. she’d never had much reassurance in her life. nobody to ever really kiss the tears away. you were different. you were special.

she slowly realized how you were her everything, too. your hearts were both chipping, but they both fit perfectly together.

she sighed. “okay. pack your things.”

your eyes lit up, immediately jumping up from the couch to grab your stuff.

you knew your parents wouldn’t care about this eventually. there’d be the initial shock, but after time, nobody would care. you were always seen as nothing but another mouth to feed.

your bag full, you walked out of your room for the last time. lucy gray called for you from the doorway. “you sure?”

as you gazed at your house for the final time, you nodded, joining her in the doorway. “positive.”

#spotify #this took so long I’m seriously so sorry 😭#lucy gray baird #lucy gray baird x reader #lucy gray baird x y/n #lucy gray baird x you #lucy gray #lucy gray x reader #lucy gray x you #lucy gray x y/n #hurt/comfort #angst #fluff #reader insert #tbosas #the ballad of songbirds and snakes

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wifeofsnowbaird · 3 months

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You Can't, You Can't Catch me Now I'm coming like storm into your town

Part 1/Part 2/Part 3

Masterlist

[Mentor!Coriolanus Snow x time-travel, hg-era, tribute!reader x toxic!Finnick Odair (in the Peacekeeper era)]

Warning: gore, blood, gun and knife violence, serious injury, death, physical assult, possibly non-con...as I said, maybe...

Summary: You are a rebel, the last chance of the rebellion against President Snow. You're told to go on one last mission to kill the man who massacred Panem. It took you years to understand your mission when you became [name] Lily Baird, starting from the age of five till before the reaping day of the 10th Hunger Games.

The day you began your plan to destroy President Snow before he became the villain he was meant to become.

'Both sisters, Lucy Gray and [Name] Lily Baird are a part of the Covey, and though they have been chosen as tribute for both District 12 and 9 because of our own mistakes, we hope they will stay safe.'

You knew about [Name] Lily Baird, named after her because your mother was inspired by her fiery personality and strength, but now you realize that you were transported to a time before the Baird sisters died, one of sickness and one because of Coriolanus Snow himself.

'I will kill you, President Coriolanus Snow.'

Once you woke up your body shuffled around on the cold floor. Apparently, in the old Training Center where all the tributes stayed, they had no real bed or even a room and most people tended to sleep in bundles next to each other for body heat.

You slept next to your sister and the District 8 girl you had met, Wovey.

You had planned to make use of your skill, like Lucy Gray’s snakes, Haymitch had told you about [Name] Lily’s mockingjays. Unfortunately, a Peacekeeper appeared to take you and Lucy Gray out to the Arena to meet up with your mentors.

A curly haired boy walked up to you two and extended a hand in greeting towards the girl beside you, proceeding to introduce himself.

‘Hi, I’m Sejanus Plinth, and I’ll be your mentor!’

Lucy Gray grimaced before accepting his hand and following him as he led the way.

‘[Name], how was your sleep.’

A gentle voice made its way into your ear. You instinctively lunged toward the person behind you but they managed to dodge, but not without a slight scar from your sharp nails.

Coriolanus Snow, that bastard.

You glared at him before accepting that you can’t do much to get out of the situation. Nodding towards him, you looked toward the other tributes that practiced with their mentors.

Coriolanus rolled his eyes but left you gazing away from him as he wondered why you didn’t like him much.

What have I done? I suppose that since I’m her mentor she might dislike me but…No she likes me, I can tell by her red face.

‘I’ve been curious ever since I saw you, why have you been hurting me with your scratches like you’re some cat?’

You rolled your eyes and frowned once you noticed Snow’s vibrant blue eyes coast over your body and meet your eyes.

You laughed as you met his gaze.

‘No Tribute likes their Mentor, Coriolanus Snow…Besides, I can barely trust you ’

It was the best you could come up with since your reasoning-you killed many people and are just an asshole-wouldn’t be taken at face value.

Coriolanus hummed, his electric eyes glaring down at you before he shook his head and pointed toward a bow and arrow near the Arena doors, his crimson academy uniform blinding you.

‘Let me teach you how to survive the Hunger Games,’ he paused, looking back at you for some clarification to continue.

‘Because I promised to take care of you.’

might do part 4 today

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asterias-record-shop · 7 months

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Hello, I wanted to ask if your fic requests are still open? Cos I please want to ask for a Finnick Odair x reader involving major character death

So the reader's personality is somewhat similar to Lucy Gray Baird, ( if you have read A Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes). Also, I'd like her to be a victor from District 5. Because of her voice, Snow often has her sing at the capitol. She and Finnick often run into each other because of frequently having to be at the capitol, so they develop a relationship and start seeing each other romantically in secret.

Then, she later on joins the rebellion but ends up getting murdered by lizard mutts in the Mockingjay timeline because she chose to sacrifice herself during that mission. So it's the reader who dies instead of Finnick

If you want to skip this request, then that's okay. But thank you, if you'd like to take it.

Also, the one shot would be inspired by the song Miss Americana & The Heartbreak Prince by Taylor swift

╭════• ೋ•✧๑♡๑✧•ೋ •═══╮

— a dream is a wish

╰════• ೋ•✧๑♡๑✧•ೋ •═══╯

I am so sorry if this is bad, I’ve never been the best at writing angst. Im not proud of it, but i didn’t want to not try :)

𓆩[main masterlist]𓆪 𓆩[request/ask me something!]𓆪 𓆩[join the taglist!]𓆪

Finnick wasn’t sure where you had gotten the song you sang to your son. The Capitol had gotten rid of everything that gave knowledge of the old world, but you sang a song that you had heard from a movie.

“A dream is a wish your heart makes,” you sang, humming continuously as you slowly swayed in your all black tactical gear. He didn’t want you to go, he hated the thought of you going. He just couldn’t get you to stay. “When you’re fast asleep, in your dreams you’ll lose your heartache…”

“Y/N,” Finnick spoke as you smiled back at him. “You… you shouldn’t come.”

You continue to hum, swaying as you slowly set down your son. “Effie said she would watch Alexei. Everything will be fine.”

Finnick shook his head, sighing. “What if… what if something happens? You know we said that someone always stays when we go on missions.”

“Do you think I’d sit this out?” You ask, turning around. “Finnick, nothing will happen, I swear,” you whisper, cupping his face as he leaned down to kiss your wrist. “We said we’d do everything together too, remember? In our vows, we swore.”

“Not when I could lose you,” he whispers, his voice hoarse as he holds your forearm delicately. “I can’t lose you.”

“You won’t,” you press a firm kiss to his lips, shaking your head. “I said I’d follow you anywhere and everywhere, remember? No matter what.”

He inhaled shakily, closing his eyes as he pressed his forehead to yours. “Please don’t come.”

“I can’t let you go on it alone.” You whispered back, shaking your head. “I won’t. Anywhere and everywhere you go, I’m going.”

Finnick lets his other hand settle on your waist, sighing as he pulls you closer, letting his lips press continuously against your wrist before moving to your lips. “I love you.”

“I love you too.”

On the journey there, he held your hand tightly through every step, enjoying your soft singing as you held his hand tightly. He loved that stupid song you sang about dreams, and how his dream was always to start a life with you somewhere safe and secure. He was fighting for that somewhere, and to be honest, he had mixed feelings about fighting it with you.

“I have something important to tell you when we get back,” you say, smiling as you bumped his hip with your own. “I think you’ll be ecstatic.”

He smiled widely, kissing your head. “Anything you say makes me ecstatic.”

As soon as you both went down that tunnel though, he knew something was wrong. You trailed behind him, much to his dismay, mainly because you were the best with firearms and you knew you could protect him.

“Go up first,” Finnick tried to tell you, but you just shook your head. “Y/N, I'm not asking you.”

“Finnick, I’m not going up that latter first,” you say, your usual strong will making his stomach twist. “Go. I’ll be right behind you.”

“Finnick, come on,” Katniss called as you started pushing him up the ladder, tapping his thigh.

“I love you,” you say quickly, smiling as he finally gets up.

Finnick goes to turn around, your scream making him almost fall as he made it to the top. He could barely get out your name when he saw the mutts come out, about to jump down before Katniss yelled into her earpiece.

“No! No, what are you doing?!” Finnick attempted to let go before Katniss grabbed his shoulders and tugged him onto the overhead, the explosion making his heart clench.

His ears were ringing, the wishful thinking of trying to hope that it was fake, that you followed behind him shattered whenever he stared down at nothing.

“What did you do?” He whispers, his voice soft before turning to Katniss. “What did you do?!”

Tears were running down her cheeks as a wail fell from her lips, the only person she ever saw as a friend or an older sister gone.

Finnick refused to believe it, though, already grabbing his trident. “We’re going back down.”

“She’s gone!” Katniss sobbed, running her hands through her hair. “She’s gone, she’s gone…”

Her voice continued to drone on, going into soft whispers as Finnick stared at the hatch.

This wasn’t real.

It wasn’t until he got back to District 13 did everything settle in. Seeing Katniss hold Alexi who was wailing and sobbing, tears in her eyes as she tried to remember the words you always sang so beautifully.

“I don’t… I don’t remember them,” Katniss whispers, thinking back to when you helped calm her down on the beach during the third quarter quell, singing softly as you braided her hair. How could she not remember them?

“I do,” Finnick’s voice was hoarse, his eyebags dark and obvious, a sniffle filling the room as Katniss tried to shake her head.

“You need to go back to sleep-”

“A dream is a wish your heart makes,” he hummed softly, his voice cracked and breaking since he wasn’t much of a singer, but he quickly calmed down at the sound of the lyrics. “When you’re fast asleep, in your dreams you’ll lose your heartache…”

Finnick continued to sing the words that you knew by heart, even if it wasn’t the best, but it still made Alexi calm down. He stared down at Alexi’s eyes which were an exact replica of your own, smiling with tears filling his eyes.

Maybe not all hope was lost, afterall.

Taglist: 𓆩[@lem0ns77]𓆪 𓆩[@cecepop15]𓆪 𓆩[@memeorydotcom]𓆪 𓆩[@your-favorite-god]𓆪 𓆩[@nowitsmissing]𓆪 𓆩[@xyzstar]𓆪 𓆩[@just-my-shit]𓆪 𓆩[@your-mom21]𓆪 𓆩[@c78r]𓆪 𓆩[@dizscreams]𓆪 𓆩[@copypastedaphne]𓆪 𓆩[@asrt5]𓆪 𓆩[@xoxomoonlightbabe]𓆪 𓆩[@f-aggotry]𓆪 𓆩[@ineedmentalhelp123]𓆪 𓆩[@aerangi]𓆪 𓆩[@luv-lella]𓆪 𓆩[@teenwolfbitches28]𓆪 𓆩[@miawastakens]𓆪 𓆩[@hufflepuffsweetheart1]𓆪 𓆩[@nowitsmissing]𓆪 𓆩[@satans--beloved]𓆪

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simpforfandom231 · 4 months

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shoo! skedaddle now!

summory : Y/N being normally the jealous and overprotective girlfriend but when a girl approaches Y/N, Lucy Gray gets worked up and skedaddles the girl away.

pairing: Lucy Gray Baird x Fem!reader

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The Hob buzzed with life as Lucy Gray Baird, the beloved sweetheart of District 12, took the stage with her melodic voice. Y/N, her fiercely protective girlfriend, stood at the edge of the crowd, eyes fixed on Lucy with a mix of adoration and vigilance.

As Lucy sang, her voice wove through the market, captivating everyone within earshot. The Covey, her troupe of talented musicians, played along, their harmony creating a magical aura around her. The crowd swayed and tapped their feet, mesmerized by the performance.

However, amidst the enchanting melody, trouble brewed. A figure—a slim and elegant girl—sauntered up to Y/N, flashing a smile that could melt snow in the dead of winter. She started chatting, batting her eyelashes, and Y/N, being as polite as ever, engaged in the conversation.

Meanwhile, Lucy’s eyes darted back and forth between her singing and the unfolding scene at the edge of the crowd. Her song continued, but her heart raced faster than the rhythm she was crooning.

Finally, as her song drew to a close, Lucy couldn’t contain her jealousy any longer. She shot a quick glance at the Covey, signaling them to wrap up the tune. The moment the final note hung in the air, Lucy dashed off the stage and made a beeline for Y/N and the flirtatious stranger.

“Hey there, what’s your name?” The elegant girl cooed, oblivious to the storm brewing.

Lucy swooped in, planting herself between the stranger and Y/N, her eyes fiery. “Hi! So sorry to interrupt your charming conversation, but my girlfriend here is about as available as a pearl in a pigsty, so I suggest you find someone else to swoon over.”

Y/N blinked, caught off guard by Lucy’s sudden appearance and protective stance. The stranger, taken aback, stammered, “I-I didn’t mean to—”

“Oh, I’m sure you didn’t,” Lucy interjected, a playful smile breaking through her facade. “But she’s all mine, you see. So, shoo! Scoot! Skedaddle!”

The Covey, watching the scene unfold, exchanged amused glances before picking up the beat, turning Lucy’s impromptu interruption into an impromptu exit song for the bewildered stranger.

Y/N, now chuckling, wrapped her arms around Lucy. “You’re like a ferocious little mockingjay when you’re jealous.”

“I can’t help it! You’re my favorite person, and I don’t share well,” Lucy teased, leaning into the embrace.

The Covey struggled to stifle their giggles as Lucy returned to the stage, her cheeks flushed from the impromptu interruption. Maud Ivory, the violinist, couldn’t contain herself. "Skedaddle? Really?" she snickered, earning a playful eye roll from Lucy Gray.

As the band struck up another tune, the crowd swayed once more to the rhythm, but Lucy couldn’t quite shake off the unsettled feeling from earlier. Her eyes darted occasionally to Y/N, who was now engaged in an animated conversation with the same determined stranger from before.

This time, however, the stranger’s intentions were crystal clear. With a sly smile aimed directly at Lucy, she leaned in closer to Y/N, her words accompanied by playful touches on Y/N’s arm. Lucy’s jaw tightened, and she gripped the microphone a little harder, her jealousy fueling a mix of determination and frustration.

Maud nudged Lucy with a mischievous grin. "Looks like someone's back for another round of mischief."

Lucy shot her a look, but Maud only shrugged innocently, her fingers dancing along the strings of her violin.

As the song crescendoed, Lucy couldn’t hold back any longer. She jumped off the stage with a newfound determination, storming toward the scene at the edge of the crowd. The Covey played on, a smirk on their faces as they watched the drama unfold.

“Hey there again!” Lucy chimed, her voice laced with a faux sweetness that didn’t quite mask her irritation. “Back for more, huh?”

The stranger flashed a challenging grin. “I just thought your girlfriend could use some company while you’re busy with your little show.”

Y/N, sensing the tension, stepped between them, trying to diffuse the situation. “Lucy, it’s okay, we were just—”

“Just what?” Lucy interjected, her frustration bubbling to the surface. “Just enjoying the attention? Sorry, sweetheart, but this dance is over before it starts. You wanna flirt? Find someone else. Y/N's taken, by me!”

The stranger’s smirk faltered, her eyes narrowing. “You’re just threatened because someone else can catch her eye.”

“Catch her eye? Please, I’m the whole spectacle!” Lucy retorted with a theatrical flourish of her arms.

The tension crackled like a bonfire as Lucy confronted the persistent troublemaker. The stranger's relentless flirtations were like sparks, aiming to set Lucy's patience ablaze.

With a disdainful smirk, the stranger teased, "Oh, come on, sweetie. Don’t tell me you can't handle a little competition."

Maud and the Covey exchanged amused glances, barely suppressing their laughter. They knew Lucy's boiling point was approaching, and it was going to be a spectacle.

Lucy fought the urge to swing her guitar like a battle axe but instead summoned her best theatrical self. "Competition? Darling, I don’t compete where I dominate," she proclaimed, gesturing dramatically to herself.

Y/N, caught between exasperation and amusement, attempted to intervene. "Lucy, let’s not—"

But before she could finish, the stranger made a move, attempting to loop her arm around Y/N's. Lucy's eyes blazed with a mix of fury and possessiveness.

"Okay, that’s enough!” Lucy snapped, her voice piercing through the din of the market. “Hands off, Miss Troublemaker. I don’t share, especially not with someone who has the manners of a Capitol peacock and the tact of a hungry Jabberjay!"

The Covey erupted in silent laughter, barely keeping their composure, while the stranger’s facade of confidence wavered.

The stranger, undeterred, continued her bratty antics, inching closer to Y/N, as if daring Lucy to react.

Lucy, in true Lucy Gray Baird fashion, felt the heat rise within her. Her eyes narrowed, a mischievous smirk tugging at her lips. “Alright, you asked for it!”

With a theatrical flourish, Lucy grabbed a nearby saucepan and wooden spoon, improvising a wild, attention-grabbing percussion solo, incorporating the stranger's attempts to fluster her. The crowd's attention turned toward the spectacle, a mix of confusion and amusement spreading among them.

“Feast your ears on the symphony of my frustration!” Lucy announced, banging the utensils together in a chaotic rhythm.

The stranger, taken aback by Lucy's unexpected response, faltered, her bravado fading fast.

“Enough!” Lucy declared, twirling the saucepan dramatically. “I am Lucy Gray Baird, and I’m about as threatened by you as a mockingjay is by a mouse. Now skedaddle, scram, shoo!”

The crowd erupted into laughter, and the stranger, defeated and embarrassed, slinked away, unable to keep up with Lucy’s whimsical outburst.

Y/N chuckled, shaking her head at Lucy's theatrics. “You never fail to amaze, Lucy.”

“Well, what’s life without a little drama?” Lucy grinned, tossing the saucepan aside with a flourish.

And with laughter ringing in the air, Lucy Gray Baird reclaimed the stage, her heart still racing, but her victory over the bratty troublemaker solidified in the minds of everyone present.

A/N: to be honest i do see lucy gray behaving like this...to funny.

#lucy gray x reader #lucy gray baird x you #lucy gray baird x reader #rachel zegler #lucy gray #lucy gray x fem!reader #lucy gray baird #tbosas #the hunger games #fanfic #fandom

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inkblotsonmyhands · 6 months

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***SPOILERS FOR THE BALLAD OF SONGBIRDS AND SNAKES (HUNGER GAMES PREQUEL) BY SUZANNE COLLINS***

suzanne collins just repeatedly pulls the best of a given genre, and what i love about tbosas is that it completely subverts the manic pixie dream girl trope.

the story opens with coriolanus snow, small-minded in his outlook, traumatized by war, starving, struggling to make his way in the world where nothing but his name holds value. he meets lucy gray baird, and instantly, she's the classic manic pixie dream girl. she sings, she wears a rainbow dress, she believes in the goodness of people, despite the fact that her life is as difficult as it gets. in standard trope fashion, she and snow are bound to each other by plot devices: he's meant to be helping her with something, but in reality she has more to help him. she says that nothing they can take from her is worth keeping—because everything she has doesn't have a name. this directly contrasts snow's position where his last name is all he has.

over time, snow begins to realise just how dire her situation is, gets actively more and more concerned about her dying, and eventually falls in love with her. she expands his world, she charms him (and everyone else), and quite literally saves his life. snow believes in debts, and when he owes his life to her, he cannot help but appreciate her for it. she falls for him too—she believes he's a good person, possibly because he's the only one in the capitol to be even remotely nice to her, combined with her genuine belief in goodness and apparent tendency for somewhat toxic relationships.

that's where the subversion starts. despite falling for snow, lucy gray's life does not revolve around him. the song she sings in her interview is about her past relationship, which greatly irks snow who has become incredibly possessive of her. possessiveness is often depicted as a desirable trait in stories with a mpdg angle, but suzanne immediately shows it as controlling and somewhat sinister, despite the story being from snow's pov.

they both end up in district 12, lucy gray as a victor, and snow as a disgraced peacekeeper. it's here that suzanne fully veers away from the more tropey aspects of such a relationship. snow enjoys listening to lucy gray sing, but is constantly upset when she doesn't sing about him, possessively thinks of her as "his girl", and clearly wants control over her life. he doesn't even enjoy all her music, disliking the more freestyle non-lyrical pieces that lucy gray and the covey clearly take a lot of pleasure in. when lucy gray takes him to the lake and meadow, snow enjoys it but hates the birds, mockingjays, that lucy gray loves. typical mpdg arcs often involve the the nature-loving girl taking the city boy to a peaceful outdoors place, showing him all the things she loves about it, and making him love them too. snow never loves the mockingjays and even makes a sport out of shooting them, and thus never appreciates the true reason why lucy gray loves that place. he appreciates it for her as his possession, but not for the freedom that it all represents. he gets increasingly uncomfortable as he starts to realise that free-spirited lucy gray no longer is dependent on him in her own turf, while he still owes his life to her.

when snow kills billy taupe and lucy gray says that this makes up for her saving his life, we see the shift truly happen. snow's debt has been repaid, and his love for lucy gray begins to fall apart without the debt tying him to her. her rebellious tendencies aggravate his capitol heart, and he starts being unable to confide in her when he does things such as inform the capitol of sejanus's escape plan.

in the final scene in the woods, we watch it all unravel. they're both equals, having killed three people each, but snow attempts to lie to lucy gray about his third kill and she realises it. she retaliates by running away and setting a snake on him. snow retaliates to that by chasing her with a loaded gun. he drowns the evidence of his second kill, frees himself of any ties to his dark past, and returns to the capitol where he believes he belongs, forgetting lucy gray and anything he learned from her.

the manic pixie dream girl does not save the desolate boy. it was never her intention to and it was not her life's goal. the boy could never be saved by anyone anyway; the only thing that might have saved him was himself, and suzanne displays repeatedly how he was never truly willing to broaden his perspective right from the start.

i love this because typical mpdg stories make the boy a victim and the girl burdened with healing him and saving him from going down a dark path, but here, it is repeatedly emphasized that snow is a victim of his own making and lucy gray goes through his life on her terms only, trying the change him out of care and the goodness of her heart but leaving him and prioritising herself when she realises that there is no point.

to summarize, lucy gray does not wear a necklace of rope besides the dead man; instead, she flees.

#ballad of songbirds and snakes #lucy gray #lucy gray baird #coriolanus snow #my writing #suzanne collins #my thoughts #hunger games #hunger games prequel #rachel zegler #manic pixie dream girl #mpdg #tropes #trope subversion #tbosas #the hanging tree

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hellomisst · 5 months

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The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes: Lucy Gray Testing Coryo After Leaving the Cabin

I watched TBOSAS this weekend and, yes, I have been planning to read the book. Actually, I am reading the book already.

But I really can't get it out of my mind. This "theory". Someone else might have already thought of it but...

Spoilers beyond this line.

It might be that Lucy Gray was testing Coryo when she left the cabin saying she'll get some katniss. She had been very suspicious when Coryo said he killed three people, when Lucy Gray only knows two. At that point, she already knows that he was lying... and she said that trust is important to her. When Coryo saw the guns while looking for fishing rods, he acted extremely creepily. I think it was at that point when Lucy Gray decided to run away.

But the thing is if she really wanted to run away, she had enough lead time for her not to be seen nor caught by Coryo even when he realized she was gone for too long and decided to go look for her. She even had time to set up a trap with the scarf and snake. When Coryo was shouting for her, she was there. The only time she realized that she really had to run away was when he started to have a meltdown and lose his mind/ sanity... or the last of his goodness.

I think what she was testing was his genuine goodness; if she can really trust him with her life or not. When Coryo decided to look for her, his initial thought and feeling was that she left him and betrayed him. He did not think that she might have been caught by the mayor or peacekeepers or just the government in general (if this was in the book, I'm not at that part yet). He did not think that she might have fallen into a trap or a hole or that she was caught by an animal. All he thought of was that he was found out and that Lucy Gray turned her back on him, when it was he who turned his back on her. I think that if he reacted differently, if he showed more concern about her wellbeing rather than his own, if he genuinely cared for her, Lucy Gray might have revealed herself saying that she had a hard time looking for a katniss that was ready to be picked and that he did not need to worry. And that her scarf had fallen when the rain swept it away and that they should look for it, but to be careful because there might be snakes somewhere.

But no. Coryo panicked and took a gun with him. He kept shouting accusations at her, kept revealing his own guilt, kept being aggressive. When he could not get an answer, when he realized he cannot own nor control her, he raged. He did say that they can talk about it, fix it, if he said or did something wrong; but his actions, tone, and gun showed the exact opposite: he was not going to trust her and that he might (will) kill her, Lucy Gray, the loose end he hoped to tame and control for the sake of love... but couldn't. All these and his raining of bullets showed Lucy Gray that she was mistaken in hoping that Coryo genuinely cared for her. All these showed that he was and will continue to be selfish and manipulative for his ambitions. The evidence was already there: Sejanus, his "brother", dead because of him and his ambitions to reign over Capitol and the whole of Panem. Which is why she ran and was (almost?) shot by Coryo. And why she sang The Hanging Tree to stir up the mockingjays and cover for her.

But then again, we really don't know what happened. The story was told in Coriolanus Snow's perspective, and for all we know, he might have been delirious that time. Maybe Lucy Gray Baird was already gone and it was some forest creature that he shot. Maybe he imagined The Hanging Tree. Maybe she was really shot but just got away and died on the way up north. Maybe she was really shot but was only grazed, so she still got away on time.

Either way, the ambiguity is amazing. There are tons of heroic tales, especially of women, that were erased from the records of history or were really not recorded for fear that they might inspire uprisings against the ruling class. The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes portray this perfectly, and why and how it happens... and The Hunger Games trilogy show what happens long after history was tried to be remade, but then marks of the past remain to see the downfall of an abusive and oppressive power.

#tbosas #the hunger games #hunger games #the ballad of songbirds and snakes #ballad of songbirds and snakes #lucy gray #lucy gray baird #coriolanus snow #president snow #snow #coryo snow #coryo #snowbaird #lucy gray x coriolanus #coryolucy #can't catch me now #the hanging tree

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daddycassie · 2 months

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Music and passion were always the fashion ~ 🎶🪽

Pairing: Lucy Gray x Fem! Bartender! Reader - 1,064 words

Warning: Kinda assault tbh… I blame Billy Taupe, Billy Taupe is his own TW, guns, gun violence, major character death, blood, fighting/beating(?), comfort to hurt?

Her name was Lucy Gray Baird. A performer, a singer. She wore beautiful dresses, deep red lipstick, and all sorts of homemade clips in her hair. You would watch her dance and sing, stomping around the stage, from your station at the bar.

Lucy Gray was like the star of district 12. Sure, some people didn’t quite like her and the covey but they most certainly knew who they were, everyone did. She looked at you from across the Hob and smiled, it was enough to make your heart throb. You looked away with a lovesick grin, cleaning cups of the remains of their alcoholic contents.

Over the time spent in the crowded bar, it didn’t take long for you two to get to know each other. Lucy Gray loved snakes, she loved long treks out in the woods, she loved singing to the mockingjays that resided there. Knowing all of these little personal things, coupled with her alluring beauty, and sweet personality made falling for her inevitable.

You didn’t try to avoid it in the slightest, you knew she’d had a recent breakup, and figured you’d have plenty of time. After all, she knew you just as you knew her. You were both young still, and had each other. That was enough for you for now. At around 3:30 PM, people began filing out of the bar and you started your cleanup.

Lucy Gray approached you with a sweet smile as you wiped down a table. “Hey Y/n, how are you doin’?” She spoke with a sweet Southern drawl. You stood up straighter, which made her giggle. “I’m doing well, just hoping to get home by 4:10, you know how it is.”

She nodded gravely at your words, “Oh, then I suppose you’re too busy to, y’know, hang out.” The brunette clasped her hands behind her back as she spoke. This drew your attention quickly. “No, no, I just mean I don’t want to be here forever. I can hang out.”

You’d thought the sun had shone in your eyes when Lucy Gray gave you the brightest smile. “Oh, perfect! Should we wait for you?” You nodded to her and she gave you a curtsy before speed walking back to the rest of the covey. After about 20 minutes you walked over to them, and the lot of you were off.

You found yourself in Lucy Gray’s room, sitting on her bed where she sat across from you, talking about anything, everything, and somehow nothing at all. You didn’t even notice when silence stretched over you two, simply staring at her dark eyes. “Y/n?” You could hear the smile in her voice, god, you loved hearing your name in her voice. “Do I have somethin’ on my face?”

You shook your head. “You’re just beautiful. That’s all.” Lucy Gray looked alarmed for all of a few seconds before laughing joyfully. “Aw, thank you! Aren’t you the sweetest thing?” You swallowed harshly and nodded to her. She leaned closer to you.

“I see you starin’ at me a lot you know. I must be awful pretty for that.” You nodded once more. “You really are.” Lucy Gray blushed. “Maybe you should stop thinkin’ about it and just kiss me.” Her forwardness surprised you, but you were never one to turn down an opportunity.

“Are you sure?” You cupped her cheek as though she was made of glass. “I wouldn’t have said it if I wasn’t sure.” You trusted her word, and kissed her, gentle with affection. Lucy Gray placed a hand on the back of your neck in response. Her smile had returned when you pulled back.

That night you held each other, she often sang you sweet nothings and you’d feed her compliments. You talked like you didn’t have to wake up and work tomorrow. You talked like tomorrow would never come, till you both fell asleep.

The following day, Lucy Gray seemed to glow more then usual, whether she was feeling the pleasant buzz of a new relationship or was simply excited by how crowded it was was unclear. Either way, you worked as usual, resisting the urge to look to the stage. Song after song played and you listened while Lucy Gray sang.

You listened closely and peacefully while working until around 2:00, when you heard a commotion in the crowd. You relaxed when Lucy Gray seemed to settle the conflict, but that was short lived. You heard a fight breaking out in the audience and quickly stood from the bar.

“Billy Taupe, don’t you touch me!” You heard Lucy Gray shriek, failing to keep down the panicked tone. You practically flew across the Hob, shoving people aside as you made your way through the crowd. Your anger only increased when you saw Billy Taupe holding a handful of the fabric from Lucy Gray’s dress.

The brunette paled as she tried to cover where the rips had exposed her leg up to her thigh. You launched yourself at Billy Taupe, punching and hitting and kicking as you knocked him back. You only pauses when her broke a chair over your head.

Lucy Gray cried out, “Stop! Wait!” She rushed off stage before anyone could stop her to try to get between the two. You wiped blood from your head with a groan and glared at the boy, who was bleeding far worse. But you knew as soon as you’d looked at him this fight was over. Before Lucy Gray could intercept a loud gunshot went off, and a body thumped to the ground.

Lucy Gray stood in shock, her ripped dress splattered with blood. She screamed, and shoved Billy Taupe, he immediately fell off balance due to his injuries. Once he was out of the way, Lucy Gray rushed to your side. Her shaky hands caressed the shape of your face.

“Y/n,” she whimpered, one hand traveling down and clinging to your hand. “This can’t — we were happy. What happened?” Lucy Gray was unsure who she was talking too, but nobody stopped her. Until the peacekeepers stormed in of course.

The bar went deafeningly loud, while Lucy Gray sat and cried by your side. A few people trampled her feet, but she hardly felt it. What she did feel, was when she was dragged away. What she did feel, was when your body was covered up.

She lost her love.

Note: honestly this one’s not for any real reason — just got bored! May have a rushed end buuuut I had fun and that’s what’s important.

#copacabana #songfic #angst #character death #gay girls #sapphic #wlw #lucy gray baird x reader #rachel zegler #tbosas #major character death #lucy gray baird fanfic #lucy gray baird #lucy gray #lucy gray x reader

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thehungergamesrenaissance · 6 months

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so i am reading the ballad of songbirds and snakes for the first time ever and i am so invested in the book, i was wondering in your personal opinion if snow ever truly loved lucy but he chose the capitol ways over love instead? also what do you think happens to lucy since we never hear about her? did snow kill her or did she run away and eventually die? my thoughts are that no matter what that lucy gray baird was such a big impact on snow that until his dying day, he is haunted by her.

Hi! I think Snow loved the idea of Lucy Gray. He was (and is) a narcissist who thinks he owned Lucy Gray. "Lucy Gray, my Lucy Gray, is she doing this for me? For my attention? No one else can have her except me." is clear behavior that he thinks it's all about him and his control over her. I think he chose being Capitol over everything. (Like his friendship with Sejanus). He was power and money hungry. I think Snow didn't kill her. My own personal theory is that she made her way to District 13 and ended up telling 13 personal stories about Snow. Which is why the "Mockingjay" is a big deal. Snow's hatred of them since he arrived in District 12 as a peacekeeper. "The shows not over until the mockingjay sings" - Lucy Gray After I finished reading Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes, I began to question my theories from over a decade ago. I think strings were pulled to have Prim's named be reaped knowing Katniss would volunteer. They (13) always had an eye on Katniss. Hence Madge Undersee giving Katniss the mockingjay pin. I think her farther, the Mayor, was part of the rebel plan. It all connects! It makes sense on why Snow was OBSESSED with Katniss and wanting to take her down. It reminded him of Lucy, the Covey, life in 12. Katniss singing songs that he heard Lucy Gray and Maude Ivory sing in the meadow. I would give anything in the world to know what was happening in Snow's head when he heard Katniss sing Deep in the Meadow to Rue. And don't get me started on how I think Plutarch Heavensbee is the BACKBONE to the rebellion. Me right now:

#tbosbas #the ballad of songbirds and snakes

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reelvibes91 · 2 months

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The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes Review

In terms of big IPs, you could not escape the 10s without having atleast been exposed to The Hunger Games franchise. Now we get a prequel that focuses on Coriolanus Snow and what made him into the man he becomes.

There is a lot this film does right so let's begin the journey with that. The first 2/3s of the movie were top notch character building and introduction to the new necessary characters for this story. Lucy Gray Baird is probably my favorite character in the Hunger Games franchise after viewing this movie. They did a good job of presenting a lead who is not heroic and relied on the help of her mentor to survive. Lucy's talented was in the field of music and the film really allowed Rachel Zegler to shine. She has a tremendous singing voice and it helped build her character.

Her chemistry with Tom Blyth was crucial to the films success. You could easily buy into them being from different worlds but also the bond the formed as things progressed. They both had a lot at stake and grew closer through grasping the straws of humanity and not letting themselves go to far. It was an incredibly well structured story.

As great as the first two acts were the final one definitely felt rushed. Which is very odd given the film runs at 2hrs38mins and definitely had the room to create a much more subtle ending. This story takes place 64 years before the events of the Hunger Games films and the story of Katniss Everdeen. By the end of this movie we didn't need that nice little bow tied ending. 64 years is an incredibly long time for things to happen to a person. It's odd to think a man would have the definitive personality of his life time for that amount of time with no growth happening through out. It would have been nice to see smaller cracks in the foundation so we are teased of the man he becomes. We know that man is pure evil but we also know it takes a lot to make a person that way.

After a tremendous start it just lost all momentum because they gave you reason to care about Snow and Lucy but threw it all away in the final act. We know Lucy is not in the main franchise and by the end of the film out of Snows life. We didn't need to see a full reason why. Sometimes interpretation is good in story. Sometimes neatly wrapped endings ruin a story because we know life does not work that way a lot of the time.

The Hunger Games franchise is one I do enjoy and this one is definitely enjoyable if you look past the rushed ending. The first two acts have incredible pacing and chemistry among the talent involved. The cast is phenomenal all the way through. As mentioned Zegler and Blyth as well Peter Dinklage, Viola Davis and others. Had the ending been a little better constructed I would safely say this would have been the best in the franchise. After this movie that title still belongs to Mockingjay.

#lucy gray baird #coriolanus snow #Rachel Zegler #tom blyth #The Hunger Games #the ballad of songbirds and snakes #peter dinklage #Viola Davis #katniss everdeen #mockingjay

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browneyeddevil · 3 months

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Lucy Gray Baird - an innocent victim or a manipulator?

What's your first impression of Lucy Gray?

Do you think she loved Coriolanus in tbosas?

What do you think might have happened to Lucy Gray in the end?

What's your opinion about theories :

1. Greasy Sae as Lucy Gray.

2. Coin as a daughter or relative of Lucy Gray.

Thank you :)

@curiousnonny

I think Lucy is probably a mix of both; innocent victim, she certainly didn't want to go into the Games and then be exiled from the last of her family. On the other hand, she's a performer at heart and it lent her some favours knowing how to act so she could be perceived a certain way. However, I don't think this stemmed from a place of malice but rather the fear of certain death in the arena. Girly was just trying to survive and make it back home. I also don't believe she ever attempted to manipulate Snow or even lied to him. She was very open about her beliefs when talking with him.

My first impression of her was kind of mild, to be honest, I thought she was quite an inoffensive character, especially when compared with other tributes who were far more brazen in their disdain for the Capitol. She definitely came across as very confident and comfortable in her own skin, which I appreciated, and I did like her introduction at the Reaping Ceremony. I think it worked really well to establish who she was as a character. I just didn't really know what to do with her, to be honest.

I think she definitely cared for Snow and was well on her way to loving him, especially when he arrived in Twelve as a Peacekeeper. Up until that point, I think their relationship was more of a fling/comfort to her before she died. She was still heartbroken (or even her heart was just unavailable) because of Billy Taupe. However, when Coryo arrived in District Twelve that's when she started to properly consider him. The two spoke a lot about trust, and how it was more important to them than love, and I do think that she trusted him implicitly. She took him out with her family to the lake and was open with him about her history and her thoughts on the Capitol despite knowing his roots. But the longer Coryo stayed in Twelve the more red flags she encountered; his possessive tendencies, his disdain and lack of empathy for the miners hanged, his hatred of the mockingjays etc. All in all, I think she wanted to love him and be with him, but I can't see her being heartbroken over him. Betrayed, angry, and heartbroken that she had to leave her family behind sure, but not mourning her relationship with him.

Personally, I like to think that she survived initially, maybe even made it to another district and built a new life there. But ultimately, I don't think it actually matters either way. That was the whole point, was it not? Sure, we can believe that she survived and lived as a hermit in the woods, lived a full life in another district, or even died when Snow was shooting at her like a madman. But in the end, it has no effect on the story of what happened after, a moot point.

Which brings me to the theories: I don't necessarily mind the implication that maybe Katniss has some loose relation to the Covey (it's at least got some things to back it up, like Katniss knowing the Hanging Tree) but that's kind of where my line is drawn. I'm gonna be honest, I don't really care for either of the theories mentioned above.

Greasy Sae is such a background character and has so little effect on the grander story why would it even matter if she was Lucy Gray in disguise. Like? Idk it just doesn't change anything or even bring anything new to the story, so why?

Coin having some relation to Lucy just makes the war seem so petty? Trivial even. Like this isn't a war stemming from some scorned lover. This theory, in my opinion, actively takes away from the story and even harms it. It makes the conflict seem so shallow? And the themes of the original series just, don't work as well. Also, it makes Coin a way worse character, the fact that sometimes people just are power-hungry, corrupt, and lack empathy is what makes her compelling. Take that away, and she becomes really fucking boring and, again, shallow.

Thanks for the ask nonny, this was really fun to answer (and actually made me think lol).

#tbosas #lucy gray baird #coriolanus snow #thg #anon ask #anon answered

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the-witching-ash · 5 months

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Also, any headcanons for any other Raymond crossovers?

Going with your original crossover list for Raymond! 🥺

Amiee Rose Baird

Could be ship vibes after his games but I don’t know if they’d do that because of Lucia? But definitely at least besties?

Grew up knowing each other because of his friendship/relationship with Lucia.

Maybe she’s the one who told him most of Lucy Gray’s story?

Amor

No thoughts head empty besties/older sister/mom-figure vibes because of Cinna starting with Raymond’s game’s? 🥺

Concordia Snow (they have a whole life together but your getting headcanon’s 🥺)

Still not entirely ruling out they could be poly with Finnick 👀

Sometime after Hope and Maude are born, they possibly do a vow renewal type thing but this time they get to plan it how they want?

Elissa Morningstar:

Honestly can’t find that much about info about her?

Could be poly trio with Finnick?

Ginny Cresta:

Ginny is the victor of the 72/71 Hunger Games depending on if it’s the bigger crossover with Hollis and Camden and being the year before him, Raymond was the 73/72?

One of the situations where while Finnick teaches him how to be with male clients, she teaches him how to be with female clients?

Poly trio or besties again?

Raymond’s stress levels are already at an all time high with Katniss & Peeta going back into the arena but he’s even more freaked out by the thought of losing her and Finnick. 🥺

Idk what Ginny is up to in the first have of Mockingjsy but if not captured, will personally fight Coin to get her to get Raymond out of the Capitol?

Lacey Tanner

Poly Trio or besties?

Raymond almost loses his shit when he finds out Snow has been selling her to clients since she was sixteen

Raymond is terrified he’s losing almost everyone he cares about to the arena during the quill again. 🥺

Softest reunion in 13 once he’s awake and has been detoxed from the drugs in his system 🥺

Lux Marcella

Poly Trio or besties?

(Finnick suggests pitching a threesome night with Raymond to show him how a meeting with married clients could go after they’ve taught him how to work with men and women individually.)

“I don’t care you’re a career, why the fuck did you volunteer for the quill?” - Raymond, after the reaping. 🥺

Lysa Undersee

They knew each other through school, his hunting with Katniss and Gale and them bringing strawberries for the Mayor?

She vist’s him a lot once she moves into 12’s Victor’s Village after his games?

Lysa goes farel if she hears Coin doesn’t want to rescue Raymond & the captured Victor’s after quill?

Marisol Odair

Either ship vibes, besties or #1 supporter of Finnick and Raymond/the possible poly trio with Annie?

But either way decides to like him after he’s kind and sweet when he met Annie & Mags for the first time?

Yet again someone who teaches him how female clients are going to be different then being with Lucia?

Raymond’s just always terrified about losing his victor friends to the arena during the quill. 🥺

Marella Flanagan

Listen part of why Finnick likes him is he knows Mags took one look at Raymond after meeting and was like “he’s is my son now” and I feel like Marella would agree to like him after that?

Besties or ship vibes/also supporter of Raymond/Finnick/possible trio with Annie?

Raymond’s own little victor family needs to stop being in the Quill he’s panicking.🥺

Loses her shit when she finds out Raymond got captured after Katniss blew up the arena?

Waverly Coin

Bonds with Finnick in 13, promises she’ll do everything she can to make sure Raymond gets out of the capitol, even before Katniss makes her Mockingjay deal?

Poly trio vibes forming once Raymond is in 13 and recovering?

Vouches for Raymond to be apart of their squadron thing?

Willow Abernathy

Besties even before his and Lucia’s games?

The hang out a lot at each other’s houses in the Village, partly because she doesn’t want him to be alone and end up turning to liquor like Hamitch? (He hates the taste so she doesn’t have to worry about that)

Helps him figure out what his “Talent” is after his games?

Raymond becomes so stressed Willow could get reaped at some point.

Tells him he’s an idiot for wanting to volunteer for Haymitch (and that they both know Peeta would beat him to it because of Katniss.)

#oc: raymond abraham #crossovers #randomestfandomsocs

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tearsofthefilmreviews · 4 months

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Review - The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes

Let’s get something clear: I love this franchise. Yes, Mockingjay is the least consistent (both films of that moniker) and the lesser of the franchise, but I still enjoy them, and love Catching Fire, as well as the first one. The excitement that I got on the announcement of this film was already at high levels from the initial teasing, but particularly in the last couple of weeks, I have been getting more and more hyped up for it. The trailers looked fantastic…and I am elated to say that this lived up to all my expectations and more. Enough so, in fact, that it has become my favourite of the whole franchise, and this review will explain many of the reasons why it is so.

-Coriolanus Snow-

"You seem like a good man, Coriolanus Snow."

Tom Blyth is an actor I have never seen before, and he absolutely won me over with this performance. Not only is the look of him stunning, but his performance is absolutely full of depth and emotion, showing us many sides of this character that we had never seen before, and truly setting him up by the ending to become who he is. It's a captivating performance, one that really draws you into him and his mindset, which is what the entire film is seen through; the lens that is the mind of Coriolanus Snow.

It is portrayed clearly how he thinks and why he thinks this way; not just via the performance and writing, but visually as well, we feel his political ideologies deeply baked into the film in a very interesting way, providing a very different perspective than that of Katniss. His perspective, especially after the incident where he kills one of the Tributes in self-defence, is a much colder one, that slowly freezes, and then seems to unfreeze, only to become stone cold by the end. Thus, we see him kill Highbottom and go to university to pave his way to succeed the current president, who clearly manipulated certain scenarios as the “tests” she describes. He does start the film with prejudice towards those who live in the Districts but seems to get some warmth from Lucy Gray, only to go on a spiral once he’s forced to do service after being caught cheating for Lucy Gray in her Hunger Games.

This presents such a grappling political angle to be explored and felt in the film. On one hand, we clearly dislike the Capitol and what it stands for - fascism - especially the cruelty it inflicts. But because we are essentially playing from their side of the field via Coriolanus, we also feel his emotions and views on the events around him. He remarks on the Tribute killing as something that made him feel “powerful”. He is willing to cheat the system he so desires to be a large part of to save Lucy Gray. He nearly shoots her out of rage at her betrayal in the end - a betrayal is justified via very unfortunate means. He kills the mayor’s daughter of Lucy Gray’s hometown so she doesn’t rat them out and get the whole lot hung, in an emotionally shocking moment that also serves as another step for Lucy Gray to see his true nature. Perhaps the most devastating moment is when he rats out a longtime best friend, Sejanus, and does nil when he is hanged for his attempts to help out the District 12 Rebels. Clearly demonstrating his character under great stress.

“The Hanging Tree” is also evidence of fantastic foreshadowing. Lucy Gray first sings it in a beautiful field - the same field Mockingjay Part II ended on - after the second of the three killings Coriolanus performs. It's about them, Lucy Gray and Coriolanus. It gives so much more depth to the song as well as to Mockingjay, where this song was first heard - there’s more meaning in that scene now, knowing the legacy of this song - created 65 years before the 3rd Quarter Quell by Lucy Gray Baird, who knew Coriolanus Snow very intimately, the very person the Rebels and Katniss are going against is indeed, Snow. President Snow, whom he became after victory, loss, betrayal, and ultimately arriving on top.

Something I found quite interesting is the way we are presented to Snow. Yes, he is in a prestigious Capitol academy, but he isn't quite the stuck-up rich boy that the others are. He is the only one who even makes an effort to meet Lucy Gray, and is the only one who pushes for it to become the norm. He betters the Games, which in reality is only driving the oppression of the Capitol even further, and in his own image, clearly something Gaul was also looking for.

If it wasn’t clear already, let me iterate one thing clearly: Coriolanus Snow’s “transformation” in the end never really happened. It isn’t rushed. He was always this person, using the emotions shown as a way of manipulation, which is clear as day. Both in the way he makes a point of changing the Games how he envisions them, and takes more time to get Lucy Gray to bond with him.

Terrific character, truly brought to life by the script, direction, and Blyth.

-Lucy Gray Baird-

The "songbird" of District 12 - and the film/book's title - whom was essentially tricked into becoming a Tribute by Mayfair, the daughter of the mayor of the place she lives in her District. She's sweet yet focused, going with her heart rather than what others tell her; i.e. when she chases after her fellow 12 Tribute when the Games begin, rather than taking Coriolanus' advice and hiding out alone. She sticks with him until his eventual death, which was inadvertently caused by Coriolanus. We hear many tunes from her, all in various circumstances; she sings in protest when she is picked, she sings before the Games begin to get donations and to make her own statement, she sings during the Games as she is covered in snakes, which is one of the best shots of the film, she sings in a bar to all of the townspeople in 12, and she also primarily sings in that field, which is the origin of "The Hanging Tree".

Lucy Gray herself is a trustworthy person. She didn't ditch Coriolanus in the end and run away because she outright deceived him; he is the one who deceived her. He lied to her about Sejanus' death, something she quickly picked up on but didn't mention. This is the moment that makes her realize where Coriolanus' mind is headed, and that she absolutely cannot trust him from that point forwards. Clearly it does bring hurt to her - they had truly bonded over the course of the film, throughout and after the Games - and so she hesitates, watching from the bushes as he discovers her message, the dress he had given her in the mud with a snake under it. She sings, another factor that nearly gets her shot from Coriolanus' rage, another sign that she absolutely needs to dissapear. She clearly knew what he had done to his own close friend, and so him mentioning he had killed three was the moment to test him on it, and he failed that by lying.

Let me make my own opinion clear: I believe Lucy Gray is alive. The rumour that she was shot in the woods is doubtful, especially considering how far they had already been without pursuit, and I believe that it is based on Coriolanus nearly hitting her with a bullet. I do believe that she escapes Panem, and lives outside of it for the remainder of her life, something that is both her true want and need at the same time. The ending is bittersweet, and I can see why it is divisive - but I believe this is the way it ends and it makes it clearly: good ending for them both in different ways. She gets to escape Panem, while he becomes more politically powerful.

On another personal level, I absolutely love every song she sings, and Rachel Zegler smashes it out of the park. My favourite is probably "Singing At Snakes", both between her vocals, the viscerality of her performance and the gorgeous visual size of it. I love a lot about this film, but that scene in particular really hit me as something truly special. I find it amazing how she managed to turn such a situation - literally being covered in rainbow snakes - into a moment of empowerment, staring right at the camera as she sings a powerful ballad. Its a harrowing visual, and also gives a strong meaning to the title - she is quite literally the songbird, being covered in snakes - the snakes which can also represent Coriolanus. He gets ever so close to her, the two intertwined, but is ultimately deceitful and a betrayer. A real 'snake in the grass' if you will, as he's quite literally in the grass when he shoots at Lucy Gray, and she, like a songbird, sings before flying away. There's quite a lot of depth to this film, and it shows how much care is truly in the project. Especially between the Songbird and the Snake who both helps her and then backstabs her in a metaphorical sense, all set out by the Songbird's Ballad.

The final thing I would like to talk about in relation to Lucy Gray is the spectacular turn we see and is aforementioned in this review. Her tension in the cabin hidden behind a smile is palpable, not to mention the knife she holds as she exits and vanishes out of the life of Coriolanus. So many emotions are visible and tangible on the surface, but in that moment, after he discovers the guns hidden by Spruce to save Coriolanus from the law, there is so much under the surface. Tension, fear, realization, and commitment…as she decides to truly commit to ditching him for the betterment of herself and her cause. Seeing him for how he always was.

Its such a poetic way she exits as well. Quite literally she says that she’s “going to go get katniss” and leaves Coriolanus. And then, decades later, Katniss from District 12…such a delightful connection.

What a character. I love Lucy Gray Baird.

-The Games-

"Filled with the terror of becoming prey...see how quickly we become predator?"

The Games aren't truly run by Casca Highbottom; the real one behind the strings is Viola Davis' Volumnia Gaul. In fact, in the film's ending, Highbottom admits he wanted the Games to be cancelled, but they were pushed further due to Coriolanus' proposal to Gaul. His proposal changes the Games completely, making the Tributes be seen as humans so that the audience connects more, and will tune in more in the hopes that those they like will win. As Coriolanus realizes, heavily based on Gaul's quote above, the Capitol uses the Hunger Games to keep the Districts in line, by showing them the "true nature" of humanity, how they will turn in an instant to save themselves. I put that in quotes because Lucy Gray isn't entirely wrong; a lot of the people in the Games are very terrified and reluctant, so not everyone is truly bad. Yet, Gaul isn't entirely wrong either, since everyone - even Lucy Gray herself - does things they would never do otherwise in the name of self-preservation. It's definitely an interesting discussion, because the latter is directly promoting fascist, harsh rule, while the former is more optimistic and seeking change, yet they both, in this context, seem to have a point. I do personally prefer to stick by Lucy Gray's point of view, but it is impossible to ignore how Gaul does see the very unfortunate, primal side of humans.

This Hunger Games, the 10th Annual, is probably the best Games sequence through the entire series. I love the big, sprawling arenas of the previous films, with all their manufactured nature, but this is a whole new experience. The arena here is much more claustrophobic and focused, comprising only of pathways and ducts inside the building, as well as the not-so-large centre area. It's also affected by the rubble laying around, which was caused by a rebel bombing that killed four of the Tributes before they could even begin playing. After all, as Gaul says, the Games must go on lest they risk being seen as weak by the Districts. It's a very frantic and fast-paced Games, while also being incredibly tense and exciting. Lucy Gray shows how much survival instinct and wit she truly has, dodging all sorts of assaults on her path to help her fellow Tribute from 12, who has a neck infection and rabies, which nearly kills her had he not been killed by being smashed in the face by a bottle of water, indirectly sent by Coriolanus. He later helps her again just before the snakes emerge, and again using water.

Lucy Gray's victory is one that is cut short for Coriolanus, who is exposed and sent off. However, Lucy Gray herself is treated well in the end, sent off by Highbottom back home, with a sum of money. This shows more of Highbottom's character; his disdain for the Games, and so he is clearly trying to help the victor feel more at home, especially after the unexpected snake incident. She resumes her normal life while also planning to ditch Panem entirely; not to rebel and storm the Capitol like Katniss does many decades later, but to use her victory to her advantage and get out of the country. Which she does, in the end. She is never mentioned in history, likely wiped out entirely by Coriolanus, as they claim that the only District 12 winner prior to Katniss and Peeta was Haymitch.

Everything from the writing to the filmmaking and acting from all the Tributes - showing pure, raw adrenaline and desire to survive - makes this Hunger Games undoubtedly the best one in the series. The others - 74th and 75th - are great in their own rights, but honestly don't feel as fully complete and realized as this one really does.

One thing about this Games in particular that is amazing is the voyeuristic detachment we often get when it, as will be mentioned below as well. It brings us a whole new perspective that we never truly got in the past; that of the wealthy Capitol figureheads watching over the bloody, televised competition - comprised of the mentors, crowd and host - that adds another layer to it all. It’s for the first time in the series we are in this room. With how those within the room react, it is more clear than ever how much of a spectacle this is seen as, even when people get - on Coriolanus’ suggestion - more time to know the Tributes. The lives lost are treated as simply a part of the show, a visceral show meant to shake the viewer to their core, to show them manufactured primal emotions and actions, in an effort to keep those who would otherwise rebel in line. The fact that we get this sort of experience, thanks to the heavy involvement of Coriolanus, adds to how special these Games are. This and the dynamic, creative camerawork lends itself to a splendid viewing experience - which essentially convicts us as the viewer. We hold a voyeuristic perspective on top of a voyeuristic perspective, and are no different than the Capitol, being entertained by watching the less fortunate slaughter each other. Those in the room, watching the Games on the screens, are already detached from it - even most mentors, besides Coriolanus, who - based on their reaction as they leave - cared more for the prize than the Tribute. We are detached by a further layer, and yet, we as the audience have more emotional investment; we care for these characters, especially Lucy Gray and the young child, who reminds us of Rue from the first film. Due to this, it shows us how we are not currently at the Capitol’s level, its not as harmful, especially since what we are watching is fictional and we know this. However, the film warns us…we aren’t far removed from the Capitol. Its a scary thought, and it absolutely should be - with the state of the world, Panem seems more and more realistic by the day.

-Foreshadowed Consequences-

I want to talk about some of the great, subtle foreshadowing we get in this film, the first revolving around the death of Casca Highbottom at the hands of Coriolanus. It's a small moment, but the exact substance that Coriolanus poisons in the ending is something we see Highbottom drink right in the beginning of the film. We then see Coriolanus find a capsule that looks exactly like the ones Highbottom uses, except it is a much more deadly substance, a small detail with a fantastic payoff.

When Coriolanus sees the snake pit from above and is speaking to Gaul about the proposal, before it comes up between them, he learns from her that the snakes will not attack you if they are familiar with you - including getting your scent from an object, which is why Coriolanus takes the cloth with Lucy Gray's on it and shoves it into the pit, which is what enables her to survive the Hunger Games after a furious Gaul pours the snakes in, which kill every other Tribute.

The other moment has already been mentioned, when Lucy Gray sings "Singing At Snakes" and is covered in the snakes while she sings, eventually being freed from them. This is literally the ending of the film represented in a single scene, with her entangled in the snakes that represent Coriolanus, only to be freed of them by the end. I said this already, but it is beautiful, and made even more so by the fact that we get both the direct and voyeuristic perspective of it - seeing it both in the arena and via the screens.

-The Filmmaking-

I love so much of the filmmaking on display here; I've mentioned the visuals before, but I want to get more in depth in this section. I see much great artistic value in the filmmaking side, beyond the writing and character building.

The cinematography is spectacular. There are so many interesting shots and camera angles, and ways of using screens during the Games to give an interesting voyeuristic perspective on the Games. We get a mix both from that voyeurism Coriolanus and the other mentors show, and a more direct perspective in the arena itself, with very dynamic camerawork. I love the rounded effect during action scenes, whether the camera is moving or staionary, where you truly feel the space around the characters.

The production design is simply flawless. There isn't much else to be said to describe it...everything fits the world and the time period of said world to a T. The arena especially is spectacularly constructed, as are the many other buildings we see, such as the classroom in the Capitol, Gaul's lab, Coriolanus' house, etcetera...and the District 12 that we see is such a great contrast to it. It feels much more rustic and industrial than even the less-wealthy homes in the Capitol. The cabin the two leads go to in the end is such a charming little place, complimented by the rainy exterior, and I also really liked seeing the outside of the Capitol in a much different light; a positive view on it from Coriolanus.

The costuming is great. All of the clothing feels very believable, and helps the world feel even more realized and complete. From the academy uniforms, to the dresses, there is a delicate fabrication to it all that shows a clear care and love of the franchise, and attention to detail.

Editing and VFX are great; no funky CGI or weird cuts to be seen here. Everything flows very well and makes sense, and the CGI is damn good. Visually otherwise, there is such a gorgeous style to the film, particularly when we are in the Capitol. The switch in visuals between the opening half - the Games and setup - is very interesting as well. We go from bright, warm colours to a much colder pallette as soon as Coriolanus is sent into service, and then we get a middle road at the end. Keeping the look of the Capitol while also maintaining the colder look, showing the character progression clearly in a visual way. To help the world feel even further lived in, we see many people in many locations doing things; the 'busyness' of the scenes, to keep things from being static, even when the focus is clearly on certain characters. Even in smaller moments, such as when Coriolanus records the fatal recording of Sejanus, they aren't simply stood still and talking; they are busy, which keeps the engagement going even in the slower scenes. The dramatic effect produced visually and also through performances further sells these, such as when Highbottom confronts Coriolanus about the cheating.

Also, I want to touch on the writing of the film. I've gone into depth on the main characters already, so this will focus on the side characters that both liven up the world and play significant roles in the story of the film. Casca Highbottom is a very prominent figure, the one who truly invented the Hunger Games, even if he admits he dislikes the idea now, especially after 10 years of it. Making such a comment is what ends up with him dead, killed off to make way for the new regime to take his place. His actions are clearly in an attempt to subdue the Games as much as he can, and his frustration is clear when Coriolanus' proposal works to only further the institution that Casca so despises. This is why he sends the young man into service; not truly due to the cheating, but he realizes the power that is present and wants to get rid of it before the Hunger Games become even more monstrous. Then we have Gaul, who has all of Panem wrapped around her devious fingers. She's very clever and intelligent, and seems to have a great judge of character. After all, she refers to many of the things Coriolanus went through as 'tests' of her own design, one of which was clearly the snakes in the Games. She wanted to see how far he would go, what rules he would bend, to get his way, something critical to him both being useful to her and a desirable replacement when she eventually would pass on.

Finally for this section, let's talk about the score, songs and sound design in a bit more than passing detail. This series has always had spectacular music, and this is not a trend that ended 8 years ago. We have an impeccable score here, that both sounds great on its own and really digs the emotional beats deeper. One moment I loved was when our leads are laying together near a lake, and all is calm...until the score gets tense, as the conversation goes a bit awry, their ideals and values clashing. The tension is heightened through the score, and very keenly displayed. The tracks during action scenes are as intense and exciting as they need to be, particularly during the Games themselves. Sound design is also great, a lot of it very subtle and going further to just sell the believability and viscerality of it all. All of the songs are great; Rachel Zegler sells them vocally, and the musical production matches each one so well, and when it needs to, lets her be perfectly raw or even in tune with the score itself.

All of these elements, combined with everything else discussed - characters, the interesting politics, the narrative - really make this such a perfect work of art that I don't honestly think, even as a series fan, was reached by the others. This film even blows Catching Fire out of the water very much.

-Conclusion-

I think my absolute love for the film is evident in however many words I've written out here. It's a true labour love of both for filmmaking and also the franchise, and its a clear evolution of Lawrence's craft. I applaud him for fighting for this to be one film, against the studio's wishes, because it is undoubtedly much more complete and superior like this; giving it the Mockingjay treatment would have only been a disservice.

It is with a highly happy heart that I bestow my rating upon this film and, even if it might go down, remember how this film held a 3.8 average on this platform, showing clearly how this film is beloved by its fandom.

10/10.

#tbosas #the hunger games #spoilers #the ballad of songbirds and snakes

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m-ockingjay · 3 years

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MY HUNGER GAMES PLAYLIST SERIES

so, I have this mania of making a playlist for everything that I become obsessed with and of course there's some for the hunger games series. I've always related many songs with these books, but it was only after reading the prequel The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes and seeing how Suzanne Collins used many already existing songs to build this history, that I've decided to actually build these playlists for it.

It started out with this one with TBOSAS name in it, where I put the entire original soundtrack + a few songs that definitely reminded me of this history in general, the entire saga, trilogy, prequel and franchise but also the kinda of songs that both Katniss and Coriolanus described as "from" the District 12. (btw the fact that the first soundtrack from 2012 is called "songs from district 12 and beyond" still blows my mind everytime after reading tbosas). I've tried to stay faithful to the style of the soundtrack. There's a lot of pop songs but it's mostly country and alternative music with incredible lyrics. (https://open.spotify.com/playlist/1BDULdk1DcFEXy4tjYGXP4?si=bWSpzX_7R5qotXeeIQsV6Q&utm_source=copy-link)

The 2nd one is entirely dedicated to everlark lovestory. I'm obsessed with hunger games but there's this whole other type of obsession with Peeta and Katniss and specially their love bounding that made me divide it in 3 playlists: one for them and two for their POV's. It gets me everytime how the most remarkable songs from the books relate somehow with them (valley song, hanging tree, deep in the meadow... and so it goes). There's many ballads (of course), pop music (i mean, taylor swift and lorde are essential) and country/alternative jam's. (https://open.spotify.com/playlist/3pKO4jJHIoCtoWj0EQ7giv?si=uGcdObzVTT-13lgBpMrIXA&utm_source=copy-link)

The 3rd one is dedicated to my favorite character in the entire world: Katniss Everdeen. Its also the second part of my everlark trilogy aaaand one of my favorites playlists ever. Once again, after TBOSAS songs and The Covey Baird, I've had a tip of what the songs that Katniss were raised with could sound like, so I sticked to this thought to build it. From what it seems, Katniss has a conflicted relationship with music but it has always been a part of her and how she expresses herself. I've heard Katniss in many songs since I've read this trilogy. But long story short: the playlist has a lot of slow and powerful songs, many romantic ballads as well (its a everlark playlist too) and way too many melodramatic lyrics (FKA Twigs, lot of Lana Del Rey and once again, Taylor and Lorde). But there's also some pop songs that don't reflect her feelings but the effect she has on others, real life or not (Girl on Fire by Alicia Keys, duh). I've also tried to put it on the timeline we know of her story. (https://open.spotify.com/playlist/1DFrNdASyGhthe1zRA6lJp?si=bOX3BiKhSM2usBd-qkjB-Q&utm_source=copy-link)

The Peeta one it kinda works like the one before it, except that we don't know how is his relationship with music other than the moments he had with Katniss, but he's an artist, after all. His history kinda of evolve around Katniss, once that's from her POV, so of course most of it are how I imagine him dealing with his feelings for her throughout the trilogy. The love, rejection, admiration, partnership and then hate, remorse and growing back together having her as his muse always. But there's also many of what I believe that is Peeta's nature. His unconditional love and trusting for LIFE no matter how bad it is, that's were the quote title came from. Tried to reflect that yellow on both Peeta from before and after hijacking, but I also tried to reflect the pain he get throughout it. Not as calm as the other playlists, there's some psychedelic, 80s and synth pop tunes along with the love, slowed and hopeful songs. Is definitely my favorite and it also follow his timeline. (https://open.spotify.com/playlist/3v6JyZRFpRb23ZG4TYUvWE?si=TCTKDBMISYW7XI1RgS5t3g&utm_source=copy-link)

And of course, there's Lucy Gray's one because I will never think that we had enough content of this character. She is the origin and master of the hunger games original songs. She is the one who gave Katniss, district 12 and Panem the anthem of the revolution along with the mockingjays impact. The purest form of her feelings come through her lyrics and her songs. Her freedom is what matters the most for her and is where her character was build in. From what we've seen in her songs (which are incredibly performed by Maiah Wynne), that's what she sings about as well, even when she explore her romantic and conflicted relationships with both Billy Taupe and Coryo, she is relating about her freedom. That's where I started with this playlist. I've tried to follow what I think The Covey songs sounded like: country songs with powerful lyrics and powerful female voices that reflect the femininity and performance that are so attached to Lucy Gray's trajectory. (https://open.spotify.com/playlist/2skw5lY60Sj0qYj5h4fLtR?si=p3Guq1iORsWoC-02QmsFBg&utm_source=copy-link)

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danisaur-arts · 3 years

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THE BALLAD OF SONGBIRDS AND SNAKES: BOOK REVIEW

Spoilers ahead, read at your own risk

A couple of weeks ago, I was rewatching Catching Fire to have something in the background while I painted my nails. Truth is I was too hooked with the movie to do much painting, and that's how 2013 me took over and I became invested in the world of the Hunger Games again. I reread the trilogy and then got TBoSaS for a Christmas gift.

I knew absolutely nothing about the book. For a while I even thought it was about Haymitch's games. But after opening it I realized it was about president Snow?! I was mind-blown but also excited to get this perspective on how a young boy became a horrid viper president.

The book, with all honesty, starts quite very slow. But so does The Hunger Games and also Gregor the Overlander. Collins likes to have a solid establishment of the protagonist's world before diving into the story. In my opinion, TBoSaS opening is the slowest opening of all her books, but not without justification.

As the story moves on, we are presented to an ambitious Coriolanus Snow. Mind you, ambitious, not evil yet. He meets Lucy Gray Baird, District 12's girl tribute who he had to mentor for the 10th Hunger Games, and us the readers are quick to pick up the spark this Covey girl had on Panem's future president.

Snow's relationship to Lucy Gray Baird developed an entire new persona of him. His usual hateful and ambitious character he usually has when talking to the likes of Sejanus or Dean Highbottom is gone when he's with Lucy Gray. That scared me at the beginning, because it sort of made Snow empathize-able and also low-key made me ship him with Lucy Gray. But then I realized something, and you should keep this in mind when reading this book too; we already know Snow is evil, we genuinely know the book won't have a happy ending and we know there's no lovely future with Lucy Gray Baird. So, that means this book is not about a love story, or the games themselves. It is about how quickly a highschool boy can develop a dictator's ideology and how quickly the media can make something as horrible as the hunger games an entertaining show.

I particularly liked this bit about the hunger games in the book, to see this entirely different perspective of the games, not only on how they used to be organized, but on how they were seen by the people of the Capitol. To think many of them used to even hate them and find them gross is just proof that anything dressed nicely can fool the vanity of the people.

But back to Snow, I want to emphasize on the point that evil is not born, it is made. Snow did not develop his ideas by himself. Dr. Gaul was clearly pulling his strings. Feeding him with her ideology and pushing the little things we all think in the darkest part of our hearts to the surface, Making Snow justify them as necessary. Maybe he had evil in him, but it was Dr. Gaul who shaped it to the man he became. And Snow didn't let her down, because at the end, it is our actions who define us, not our words. And he proved to live by his evil ideas (rip Sejanus, we will always miss you even though you were a drama queen)

And I think Snow developed this mindset ^^ towards the ending. What he had with Lucy Gray Baird had the potential of becoming something lovely, but it was merely something based on a crush. Ladies and lads, do not be fooled by kisses! Snow became gradually possessive about Lucy Gray as the story developed, because he was also settling on his idea about control. But Lucy Gray is someone so spontaneous and free that it seemed impossible to chain her up. He may have loved her the most, but the impossibility of controlling her led him to a choice, to leave her or to destroy his ideology by staying with her. So he grew to hate her, as he hated his incapacity to control the Mockingjays... As he hated Katniss Everdeen

His desire to control everything blinded him. Desperately clinging to his lucky card that Snow lands on top, he forgot one thing:

The show's not over until the Mockingjay sings

Overall, the book has some cool hooking moments, but is quite slow when sometimes it shouldn't be. I definitely think it could've been a little shorter than it is. There are some events in the plot that feel fanfiction-ish, like the "rebel explosion" in the arena before the games, still trying to decipher the need of that one. Most of the characters names are incredibly hard to pronounce and remember. And I feel the ending was a little too rushed. I am not a fan of the way Collins writes epilogues tbh, but she's still a genius queen. The loose ends on Lucy Gray bothered me at first, but as someone pointed out, she is a mystery herself, no wonder her ending is one as well.

I loved to see this new ambiance of an almost defeated capitol and how the games used to be. Loved Tigris' moments which only add more fire to how Snow treated her years later. Lucy Gray is what I aspire to be and I also loved all the backstory Collins gave to all secondary characters.

The plot is well driven and the story, while slow, can be very hooking.

Rating: 8/10

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