you're on your own, kid

You do not have to walk on your knees

for a hundred miles through the desert repenting.

You only have to let the soft animal of your body

love what it loves.

Some K-Mag's pics from Robin's insta

They act like he should have the mindset of an adult because he’s had the responsibilities of an adult since he was a child. He’s still literally 18.

His father died in the mines. He has done illegal things for years so he can get by and provide for his family. He has taken out his name in the games to the max to refuse to allow his younger siblings to. He was whipped by peacekeepers to the point where his back was peeling off his body in chunks.

He watched his entire district burn to the ground. He evacuated them and he tried to help as much as he could. He was stuck in the us vs them dichotomy because he literally had been living a true us vs them lifestyle since he was born. He has never known luxury, he has never even left his district.

Unlike Katniss, he had never met a kind wealthy person. He had never met a friendly capital person. He has only seen that they are torturing him and everyone like him for entertainment. Coin takes advantage of this skilled, handsome, leader boy wonder at age 18 and makes him a trusted, well fed, well protected, highly thought of soldier.

The idea that he’s morally repugnant is ridiculous. He loved Katniss. He didn’t know how, but he did. And he made sure to save Peeta even if he thought he should have died before bowing in the face of torture. Is that a kind thought? No. But did it impact the fact that he protected Peeta? No. Gale feels conflicted the same as Katniss. He’s selfish with loving her but he’s literally 18.

Tangentially, he’s also horrified when he sees that his bomb design was ultimately used on children. He created the bomb concept and then put it into action after he saw the capital literally bombing a hospital. He didn’t just come up with this unique cruelty. He is doing what the capital has done to them for literal decades.