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In Lieu pt. 2 | Lucy Gray x sibling!reader

Pairing: Lucy Gray Baird x younger sibling reader (platonic/familial)

Type: Angst, Hurt/Comfort, Post-Games Trauma, Familial Support

Warnings: PTSD symptoms, nightmares, emotional distress, references to violence in the arena

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The train ride back to District 12 was worse than the ride to the Capitol.

At least before, you’d had hope.

Now you had memories - too many of them.

The Capitol escorts kept trying to talk to you. Asking questions. Congratulating you. Praising your victory.

You smiled when expected, nodded when expected, answered when expected.

It was easy.

You’d learned how to perform.

That was the worst part, because the cameras loved you, they loved the brave younger sibling who volunteered to protect their older sister, they loved the underdog who somehow survived, they loved the victor.

Nobody cared about the person underneath.

When the train finally pulled into District 12, a smaller crowd had gathered.

Some people were cheering.

Some waving.

Some just standing there watching your every move.

The noise made your skin crawl.

You stepped off the train and nearly froze.

There she was, standing at the front of the crowd.

Lucy Gray.

For a second, everything disappeared.

The cameras.

The noise.

The district.

All you could see was her.

She looked thinner than you remembered, worried, exhausted.

Like she’d spent every day since the Reaping waiting for terrible news.

Then her eyes met yours and she ran.

Lucy Gray never cared much for appearances. She shoved through people, ignored the reporters shouting questions, and practically threw herself at you.

You caught her automatically.

For one beautiful moment, it felt normal. Familiar. Home.

Then somebody nearby dropped something heavy.

The loud crash echoed through the station and your body reacted before your brain could.

You flinched hard and searched for the source of the noise with your eyes.

Heart racing.

Breathing slightly harder.

Silence followed - confused silence.

The kind that only made you realize what you’d done.

Slowly, you lowered your tense shoulders while Lucy was staring at you.

Not scared, more heartbroken.

You forced a laugh “guess I’m still a little jumpy.” To which she smiled.

But it wasn’t real.

Neither of you mentioned it again.

The first week home was exhausting.

Everyone from Capitol wanted something.

Interviews.

Parties.

Meetings.

Stories.

And like the golden survivor you gave them exactly what they wanted.

The charming victor.

The survivor.

The brave younger sibling.

The favourite killer.

And every night afterward, you returned home and pretended everything was fine. Mostly for Lucy.

You had an approximate idea what she’d gone through while you were gone. The fear, the waiting, the helplessness.

You didn’t want her worrying anymore.

So you smiled, you laughed, you told jokes.

You acted like the same person who’d left.

And you got pretty good at it and suprisingly enough everyone believed you.

Except Lucy.

She noticed everything. The way you sat facing doors, the way your eyes tracked movement automatically, the way you stopped eating halfway through meals, the way you jumped whenever someone touched you unexpectedly, the nightmares.

Especially the nightmares.

The first time it happened, she woke to your scream.

Not a yell.

Not a cry.

A scream.

The kind of sound people make when they genuinely believe they’re dying.

Lucy shot upright in bed.

“Kid?”

No response.

She hurried into your room.

You were sat upright awake unresponsive and terrified.

Tangled in blankets.

Lucy felt her stomach drop. You looked so small, scared, young.

She carefully sat beside you.

“Hey, sugar.”

Nothing.

Your mind was trapped somewhere else.

“Kid.”

Your didn’t react one bit.

Lucy reached out and then hesitated.

She remembered what trauma could do, how sudden touch could make things worse.

So instead, after a few minutes of silence she started humming.

Softly.

Quiet enough that only the two of you could hear.

An old Covey song, the one she’d sung for years when you were little, when storms scared you, when nightmares found you before.

Eventually, with time your breathing slowed, the tension eased, but your body refused to stay still and shook slightly.

Lucy remained there long after she helped you settle back down.

Watching.

Listening.

Making sure you were truly asleep.

Only then did she cry.

A few days later, she found you sitting outside behind the house.

The sun was setting, orange and gold light stretched across the hills.

You were staring into the distance lost somewhere.

“Mind if I join ya?” she asked.

You just simply shrugged.

Lucy sat beside you and for a while, neither of you spoke.

Then she quietly asked:

“How bad was it?”

Your shoulders immediately tensed.

“I’m fine.”

She sighed.

“Sweetheart.”

“I’m okay.”

Lucy looked at you - at the dark circles beneath your eyes, the weight you’d lost, the way your hands trembled.

“You don’t gotta do this with me.”

You frowned. “Do what?”

“Pretend.”

The word hit harder than you expected. You looked away.

Lucy continued softly. “You’ve been smiling for everybody else.” Her voice shook slighlty.

“But you don’t gotta smile for me.”

Silence settled between you two, the wind rustled through the grass, a bird sang somewhere nearby and you were so tired.

So unbelievably tired.

Of pretending.

Of performing.

Of acting normal.

Your eyes slowly burned. “I killed people.” The words came out muttered barely above a whisper.

Lucy didn’t react.

Didn’t flinch.

Didn’t look away.

So slowly you kept going. “I can still hear them sometimes.”

Lucy slowly reached over, but slowly enough giving you time to pull away.

You didn’t so her hand found yours.

Warm.

Steady.

Real.

“I know.”

That broke you.

Not pity.

Not shock.

Just understanding.

You started crying quietly. Then harder. Months of fear and grief and guilt finally spilling out.

Without a hesitation Lucy carefully pulled you into her arms immediately like she’d been waiting for permission.

“Sugar…” her own voice shook. “You don’t gotta carry this by yourself.”

You just buried your face against her shoulder.

“It hurts” the confession hurt more than anything. “I don’t like who I am.”

Lucy held you tighter. “No.”

You froze.

She gently brushed a hand through your hair. “No, you don’t.”

The honesty surprised you.

“You survived somethin’ terrible.” Her voice was soft. “You changed.”

You swallowed hard.

“Then why do you still look at me the same?”

Lucy pulled back enough to look at your face, her eyes were wet too. “Because you’re still my sibling.”

The answer came without hesitation, without doubt, without conditions.

“You ain’t the same person who got on that train.” A tear slid down her cheek. “But that doesn’t mean I don’t care about you anymore.”

Her forehead rested against yours. “And I’ll love every version of you that comes home.”

For the first time since the Games ended, the knot in your chest loosened.

Only a little.

But it was enough to breathe.

In Lieu | Lucy Gray x platonic!younger sibling!reader

Pairing: Lucy Gray Baird x younger sibling reader (platonic/familial)

Type: Angst, Hurt/Comfort, Protective Sibling Dynamics

Warnings: Reaping, emotional distress, references to death

Summary: When Lucy Gray’s younger sibling - you - is reaped for the Hunger Games, she’s forced to stand helplessly by as the person she loves most is sent into the Capitol’s slaughter

———————————————

The reaping had always felt unreal to you.

Even growing up, even seeing names pulled every year, there was always that quiet little thought in the back of your mind: It won’t be me.

Maybe that was childish. Maybe everybody thought that until the moment their name echoed through the square like a gunshot.

Like yours today.

The world stopped.

You didn’t move at first. Couldn’t. The sound of your own heartbeat drowned out everything else. Around you, hundreds of people shifted and whispered, but all you could hear was the ringing in your ears.

Then Lucy Gray grabbed your arm. Hard.

“No.”

Her voice cracked on the word.

You turned toward her, and the look on her face nearly shattered you more than the reaping itself. Lucy Gray Baird always looked alive somehow, even in District 12. Bright-eyed. Clever. Like she’d swallowed sunlight and refused to let the Capitol take it from her.

But now she looked terrified.

“Lucy…” you whispered.

“No,” she repeated, louder this time, gripping your shoulders. “No, no, no-”

“Step forward immediately,” a Peacekeeper barked.

You flinched. Lucy didn’t let go.

For one horrible second, you thought she was going to volunteer. You saw it happen in her eyes - that desperate, reckless calculation. The willingness to throw herself into hell if it meant keeping you out of it.

But this wasn’t the 74th Games. Siblings couldn’t volunteer for each other anymore. Too many people had tried over the years. The Capitol had made sure to close that loophole.

Lucy knew it. You knew it.

Still, she looked ready to fight them barehanded.

“Lucy,” you said shakily, grabbing her wrists. “Please.”

Her breathing was uneven. “I can’t let them take you.”

“You don’t have a choice.”

The words came out harsher than you meant them to, but panic was clawing up your throat now too. You were sixteen. You weren’t supposed to die yet.

A Peacekeeper approached, hand already reaching for his weapon. “Girl, release them.”

Lucy’s eyes burned. For a split second, you genuinely thought she might swing at him.

Instead, her grip slowly loosened.

You’d never seen her look so helpless before.

And somehow, that made this real.

The walk to the Justice Building felt like a funeral procession.

Lucy never left your side despite the orders.

Her hand stayed tightly wrapped around yours, almost painfully so, like if she let go, you’d disappear before she had the chance to memorize you one last time.

“This ain’t fair,” she muttered under her breath for what had to be the tenth time. “You’re just a baby.”

You almost laughed at that. “I’m sixteen.”

“You’re still my baby sibling.” Her voice wobbled. “Still supposed to be annoyin’ me for years yet.”

You looked away quickly before she could see your eyes watering again.

Inside the Justice Building, they gave you exactly three minutes.

Lucy came in first.

The second the door shut behind her, she crossed the room and crushed you against her chest so tightly you could barely breathe.

And then she broke.

Not quietly, either.

Lucy Gray cried like somebody had ripped her heart out with bare hands. Her whole body shook against yours as she clung to you desperately.

“I’m sorry,” she choked out. “God, sugar, I’m so sorry.”

Your own tears started falling harder. “It’s not your fault.”

“It should’ve been me.”

“No,” you pulled back just enough to look at her. “Don’t say that.”

“It’s true.” Her face crumpled. “I know how to survive. I know how to perform for those monsters. You shouldn’t have to-“

“I don’t want you in there either!” you snapped, panic slipping into your voice. “Lucy, I’m scared too okay?”

That silenced her immediately.

Her expression broke into something unbearably soft. She cupped your face in both hands, thumbs brushing your tears away.

“Oh, sweetheart…”

And suddenly you were crying harder because Lucy sounded scared too.

You’d never heard that from her before.

Not real fear.

She rested her forehead against yours. “Listen to me now, alright?” she whispered shakily. “You survive. You hear me? You survive no matter what those Capitol devils throw at you.”

“I don’t know if I can.”

“Yes, you can.” Her voice firmed with desperation more than confidence. “You’re smart. You’re kind. People love you. Make them love you up there too.”

You let out a weak laugh through tears. “You sound like you’re already planning sponsors.”

“Damn right I am.” She sniffed harshly, trying to pull herself together. “I’ll charm every last one of those rich fools if I gotta.”

That sounded more like her.

But when you looked closer, you saw her hands trembling violently.

Lucy noticed you noticing.

So she grabbed your hands instead and squeezed them tight. “C’mere,” she murmured softly.

Before you could react, she pulled you close.

The knock on the door came too soon.

Time’s up.

You felt Lucy tense like she was preparing for a fight.

“Lucy…”

“No.” Her grip tightened again. “No, just one more minute-”

“Miss-”

“They’re just a kid!” Lucy suddenly shouted, whirling toward the door. “You’re sendin’ a child in there!”

The Peacekeeper looked unimpressed.

You’d never seen Lucy look so full of hatred before. Pure, raw hatred.

Then she looked back at you.

And completely fell apart again.

She grabbed your face, kissing your forehead. “You come back to me,” she whispered brokenly. “You hear me? Don’t you dare leave me alone in this world.”

Your throat closed up. “I’ll try.”

“No,” she said fiercely, tears streaming freely now. “Promise me.”

You looked at your sister - your Lucy Gray, who had spent your whole life protecting you from everything she could - and realized this was the one thing she couldn’t save you from.

“I promise,” you whispered.

Y/N puts a hand across Cooper’s chest…

Y/N: Coop. Don’t. It’s a lie.

Cooper: how do ya know?

Y/N: it’s a bluff. You can always tell. Besides look at what you got with me and Lucy. We’re mighty close to a family.

Cooper thinks it over and holsters his gun…

Cooper: a very f—ked up family but yeah

Lucy takes a sigh of relief, interlocking her hand with Y/N…

More passionate than hope far deeper than despair

𝆹𝅥 Yandere drabble

𝆹𝅥 Lucy, Regulus 37, Windsong, X, Enigma, Medicine Pocket (REVERSE 1999)

𝆹𝅥 darling loves them no matter what/just the way they are

Lucy

For Lucy your love is what has to be and what has to happen, to be with her darling is the right path and she normally doesn't really think about if her darling may like her or not because that is something that it is suppoused to happen, she just doesn't doubt it and yet Lucy finds herself basking on the acceptance of her darling, even if she never doubt it once she has it it becomes something precious. Since in her mind this is just the normal of how things must be, when her darling finally starts accepting her it is something not directly acknowledged but is something that brings you two together, that you don't push her away and even are willing to walk at her side makes her feel encouraged to love you and express that same love even more

Regulus

Dealing with her can be quite dificult, after all she will not accept a 'no' from her darling and that will just lead her to be really demanding and clingy, she will have her darling's love even if it is by forcing it out with the pass of time. Regulus is deeply in love with her darling, she needs them in her life and there is no way she will not have her darling so at the end her darling falling in love with her is is expected, something that it must happen, the moment she realice you have finally not only accepted her but grew to love her she will just say that it was what had to happen so she will not make a big deal out of it, however relief she feels in her hearts and the way a great pressure has been lift from her shoulder is still there

37

By the moment she has fallen in love with her darling it was like if everything simply made sense, she never doubted her love nor the intensity of that same love, it just made sense that it was the way it had to be, that is why the idea of her darling not liking her back never really crossed her mind, after all that is not how things must be, so, at the end, her darling growing to love her just the way 37 loves them it ended up being more for benefits and even the sake of her darling rather than herself, after all only by this way you would began to underestand her own way to see this relasionship, to make sense of her ranting about how this is how things must be because you two are meant to be together, you two just fit with each other and there is no way around

Windsong

Dealing with her own obsesive love has been incredibly difficult for her, after all she loves so much her darling that it even hurts, it makes her doubt herself and bring out all her insecurities and fears, if she has never managed to be respected and accepted as scientist how she even dare to think that she will be able to win her darling's affections? But, at the end, somehow, her darling has grown to love her too, she doesn't understand it and even at first was too scared to believe it, it sounded too good to be true, and even when she began to believe it her heart was too hurt to let herself enjoy being loved too, so for the longest time she was too scared to mess things up, she will need a long time to pass from believing that she is not enough to fully accept that her love is reciprocated but in that process her feelings will grow and be twisted in a more dependant and need way, she needs too much reasurance to heal her broken heart

X

Falling in love the way he has fallen for his darling is quite interesting, he is well aware of the the unhealthy extent of his feelings but he couldn't care less, he will just follow his feelings and see how far he can go with his darling, how more he can grow to love you and to what extreme he can push you. At first it was nothing but curiosity but as his feelings grew to the wish of having his darling liking him back has grown too, he didn't expected to be this way not did he knew if he wanted to feel this way, it makes him feel conflicted and even hesitant, but realicing that his darling has grown to love him back despite the fact that until now he haven't taken his feelings too serious, despite that until now for him this was nothing but a game it is quite shocking, it makes him happy in a way he has never expected and even makes him stop, he doesn't know what to think or even if he deserves it, but since you are so willing to love him then it wouldn't be much of a problem if he allows himself to truly love you too now

Enigma

He is well aware that he is only a human researcher at laplace, nothing more nothing less, that is why he has been worrying a lot over his darling's opinion on him for the longest time, after all his obsesive love has already grew and goes farder deep than he would like, its not like he can't stop feeling the need of your presence and love, and he even has been trying to win his darling's affections in a rather awkward way even when deep down he is pretty sure he probably will not be able to do as much as catch the eye of someone like his darling. That is why the moment he noticed you have grown to love him despite everything Enigma was in shock, he would never guess that his darling would ever love him too, and yet, now that it is truly happening it, it is making him feel even more at edge because he should not mess up the things between you two now

Medicine Pocket

They don't need their darling's recognition nor acceptance, even if they are in love with their darling they will not stop being who they are for their darling, you are stuck with them as much as they are stuck with you, and yet the more time it passes the more Medicine Pocket grows to adapt to you, to include you in his life in a more gentle and caring way, trying over and over again until both's lifes fit perfectly fine in each other's, so winning your acceptance it makes them somewhat happy, no matter how much they insisted that is something they don't need having their darling actually loving them, despite how rude they may be at times and how dificult they can be to deal with (something that he is more than aware of) the fact that still you accept them and goes as far to even love them it makes them stop and actually think on you for once, it makes them think carefuly before growing to love you even more, in a kinder way

I tried to imagine to them, but it didn't work out.

Something you have no chance of understanding

𝆹𝅥 Yandere drabble

𝆹𝅥 Lucy, Regulus, Tuesday, Bkonblume, Enigma (REVERSE 1999)

𝆹𝅥 their biggest fear (regarding their darling)

Lucy

Lucy fears to never been able to understand her darling. Lucy struggles quite a lot with feelings, underestanding them and even handling her own, and even if she has always been sure about her own feeling she can't help but feel some uncertany when it comes to her darling, she is more than willing to follow her darling to the end of the world but the reactions she gets from her darling always confuses her, of course she likes to think that she is doing a good job but the the fear that it may not be the case always bothers her

Regulus

Regulus fears that her darling will turn their back on her. Regulus is a pirate! A rockstar! She lives under her own rules and does what she wants and since she loves her darling she will have her darling, but, deep down she actually craves for her darling's sincere love, she may not need it but she wants it, and the only thought of her darling don't loving her, or at least don't liking her tortures her at times, and if that is true then nothing stops her darling from going away, if you don't feel the same nothing asure her that you will not leave at the first chance you have, that you won't turn around and leave

Tuesday

Tuesday fears that her darling may never look at her the same way she looks at them. Tuesday loves deeply and pasionately, she is truly convinced that her dear darling just needs time to realice how both are meant to be together, how you two should be forever at the side of the other (not that you would be allowed to have any other option) and her patience is just as big as her love, she has no problem awaiting for her darling to setle down and accept her love, but, the more time it passes the more she begans to worry that it may not happen as she expects it, that you may not find it in you to love her

Bkonblume

Bkonblume fears that her darling may be disapointed of who she is. Bkonblume's work has always been in the shadows, she is not the type to come out to the light unless it is planned and necessary and until now it has not been necessary, she is more than happy to just be her darling's shadow, to follow you and love you from afar, however the more time she spend in the shadows the more she worries, she has fallen so deeply in love without actually saying anything to you, without letting you know who she is that she just started to worry that you may not like who she is

Enigma

Enigma fears that his darling will disapear and leave him alone. Enigma doesn't care for much nor clings onto things easily but when he finds something (or someone) worthy to cling on he gives his all, everything he is and owns is devoted to what he clings onto even if he is not obvious with his feelings, still he has already lost two of the most important people in his life and he can't help but be terrified of the idea of his darling leaving too, he simply would not be able to handle it, and no matter how much the simple idea of it torture him he still can't stop thinking about it, it is driving him crazy

Oh hello Escape Route! There's little to no chance that Lucy is ever going to get a peaceful life without throwing the Scientists and Dr Kurama off her trail. So your job at the travel agency is basically her way out of the country. You know the places, the flight routes, the currency, what to pack. Also, as a travel agent, you are used to dealing with clients' visa and passport problems – what to do if someone „loses “ their passport, for example. I'm not going to say that you can actually get counterfeit papers for the two of you, but at least you know a few people you can call. Maybe someone still owes you a favor and believes your story about how one of your clients got their passport stolen and wants the new papers sent to you.

Note: Do you have to fear that she might just be using you to get out of the county? I don't think so. Lucy is a pretty straightforward person. She has been lied to a lot of times and therefore tries to be honest herself. And love and friendship are things she actually values. If she wanted to force you to help her escape, she would threaten you with her vectors, not sweet-talk you into doing it.

Now where to go? Lucy would probably leave it up to you where you go. First of all, you know what routes and places are actually possible to take, and which ones are not so obvious that the Scientists will be waiting for you at the airport. And secondly, Lucy doesn't know much about the world – she certainly didn't travel a lot during her time at the orphanage, and spent the rest of her life in an underground prison. She seems to enjoy the ocean, though, so picking a hideout with access to the water would be something she'd like. Imagine taking a romantic walk at the beach during sunset with her. But, before everything else, it has to be safe.

Blend in or hide away? As I see it, your best options would either be a place where people will see but not notice you and a pink-haired red-eyed horned girl, or a place where no one will even see you – so either a large, anonymous city or a cabin somewhere in a forest / mountain region. You could consider going to an isolated island for a while, but if Dr Kurama did catch up with you there, you'd have no way to flee from there. By taking the small cabin, you could try using the mountain / forest as an escape plan – lots of cover, large terrain, and with Lucy's vectors climbing and hunting would be easy. Neither version is completely safe, of course, and one of the main reasons for that would be Nyu.

Nyu? Let's say you went to do the shopping in that big city and left Lucy behind, she slips, hits her head and changes into Nyu and Nyu tries to find you in that whole mess of buildings and people and cars and streets – not a good idea. Your chances of finding her again before she turns back into Lucy by herself are slim. And who knows what kind of people she'd run into? On the other hand, the same thing could happen if you are living in that small cabin and only go into the next village once a week for grocery shopping. On her own, Nyu'd get lost in the woods in no time. Or she'd draw all the attention to her if she somehow made it into the village, too. And attention is the one thing you don't want to have.

It comes with the job. Travel agents have to be good at planning things. It's their responsiblity to make sure the clients have enough time to get from point A to point B, that they have enough time to explore wherever they're going, and that there is an entertainment backup plan. Being good at planning would definitely help you to deal with both Lucy and Nyu. While Lucy's plan to destroy humanity might not be one you're supporting (assuming that you're human yourself), she would still appreciate someone with a straight-forward, problem-solving attitude such as herself. Someone she actually can rely on. Also, Nyu would love someone who plans ahead. You know how she is and what she likes, meaning you'd probably always have something fun for her to do – colouring books, art material, recipes to try.

Money Money Money … Even if neither of you needs much – Lucy spent her whole life being either poor or caged, and therefore has little claim on food or clothing – you still have to eat. And, if you're living in the city, pay rent. The cabin would probably be one that, as your travel agency had been informed a week prior, has stopped being rented out by the owners. Just hope they never come to see their cabin for themselves. Well, anyway – I have two ideas for you – the first one would be low-paid jobs that don't require a lot of skills. Obviously, you can't go apply to the next travel agency, at least not in the first few months. Even if you went international on your escape tour, you can bet Kakuzawa has friends in every continent. So you'd better lie low in the beginning. And that means – dog sitting jobs for Lucy (she loves it) and probably sales jobs, babysitting, or cleaning jobs for you. The other options would be to write tourist guides about places you know well and sell them under a pen name.

𝆹𝅥 Yandere drabble

𝆹𝅥 Lucy (REVERSE 1999)

𝆹𝅥 when their darling tries to escape from them

Lucy

Leave? Darling, why would you even want to leave? The big problem here is that Lucy is genuinely confused, in her eyes you are absolutely perfect, the right path to follow, the truth and only reason she has, the only thing she must follow, the love she holds for her darling it is even bigger than the love she has for science so she will be willing to follow you to the end of the world without a second of hesitation, so, of course, the moment you didn't showed up to your usual meeting, when she didn't found you in your usual spot she imediatly went out to try to find you, dropping everything and anything just to be able to find you, wich quickly leaded all Laplace to move their units to also find you since they can not affort the luxury of having Lucy completely drop her work for god's know how long

𝆹𝅥 Yandere drabble

𝆹𝅥 Lucy (REVERSE 1999)

𝆹𝅥 darling decides to stay after finding out their obsesive love

No matter how much weird stares or mean comments she gets, it doesn't even matter when she can hear perfectly fine the whispers about her and her inhuman and twisted behaivor for her darling she always shows nothing like that would stop her, she doesn't even understand why other seem so concern about her way to love her darling, she has stopped trying to understand long ago anyways, as long as she has her darling she is alright. So when you finally understood the extent of her feelings, that it wasn't just a thing for being an awaken but rather a deep twisted obsesive love, that she was truly willing to leave everything just to follow you, and yet you accepted her, you accepted to be at her side Lucy felt something indescribable, she called it happiness and smiled at you, her voice for once sounded to be more than just her usual polite tone, something like relief, hope, devotion, whatever it was it was not just happiness, but you have already accepted her so now it was too late to back off