That night, neither boy could fall asleep even though they both knew they needed rest before tomorrow. It was hard to sleep when they both knew it could be their last night together. After several failed attempts, Blaine gathered a few blankets and led Kurt to a pull down ladder in one of the storage closets that he hadn't noticed before. Blaine climbed up first then reached down to help pull Kurt up. As Kurt climbed through the door at the top of the ladder, he felt a cool breeze on his face. They were on the roof of the tribute headquarters building.

“How'd you know about this?” Kurt was surprised to see how high they were above the streets of the Capitol. He looked over the roof ledge and saw that whatever party was happening in the streets was in full swing.

“Your dad mentioned it to me. He said he comes up here sometimes when he needs to clear his head.” Burt had told Blaine about retreating to the roof each year after his tributes have fallen. The Capitol never slept and you couldn't see the stars from anywhere in the city limits. But the white noise of the wind drowned out the sounds of the crowd below, making it a peaceful place to escape to.

Blaine arranged the blankets so they were sitting on one with the other wrapped around them both. They sat so Blaine's back was against the far wall and Kurt was sitting between his legs, his back pressed against Blaine's chest. Blaine wrapped his arms around Kurt and pressed their cheeks together as they both imagined the starry skies back in 12. One of their frequent evening dates was to sit just like this, wrapped in blankets on the awning above Blaine's porch and stare up at the night sky. Rachel once gushed about how romantic of a date it was. Finn, true to form, could never understand why anyone would voluntarily spend time out in the cold just to look at the sky.

As they watched the stars together, Kurt slipped a metal wire band over Blaine's wrist. He recognized the simple bracelet immediately. It was a single silver wire with a circular medallion dangling from it. Carved on the medallion was the image of a pawprint. Blaine recognized it because Burt had given it to Kurt for his last birthday. Kurt told him that his mother had given it to Burt after he was reaped for the Games. She said it would bring him luck and when he came home she told him it had worked. He had worn it every day since, until Kurt's 18th birthday. It was the closest thing they had to a family heirloom.

“Kurt, I can't take this.” He started to take it off his wrist when Kurt put his hand over Blaine's.

“I don't need luck when I have you. I want you to have it.” He sounded so sure, but Blaine was still apprehensive.

“This is meant to stay in your family Kurt. Your dad wanted you to keep it.”

“You ARE my family. My mom gave it to my dad because she loved him and now I'm giving it to you because I love you. It'll keep you safe.” Blaine was touched.

“Thank you. It's beautiful.” He pressed his lips to Kurt's, kissing him sweetly.

They sat there in silence, listening to the wind-muted sounds of the Capitol. There was no need to speak. Both of them knew what tomorrow would bring, and it was terrifying enough without discussing all of the ‘what ifs.' Kurt felt Blaine's heartbeat against his back, steady and strong. Their breathing had synced up, chests rising and falling together as if they shared one body. Eventually Kurt fell asleep with his head on Blaine's shoulder. Blaine held him close, remembering all of the nights they fell asleep holding each other. He hadn't been trying to win over the audience when he said he wanted to marry Kurt. He wished he had a lifetime to spend with the amazing young man in his arms. As much as he knew he needed sleep, Blaine had never felt more awake and focused. He held Kurt as the roar of the crowd slowly died out and the sun started to come up in the horizon. Blaine sang softly to Kurt as he slept.

Lay down

Your sweet and weary head

Night is falling

You have come to journey's end

Sleep now and dream of the ones who came before

They are calling

From across a distant shore

Why do you weep

What are these tears upon your face

Soon you will see

All of your fears will pass away

Safe in my arms

You're only sleeping

...

Eventually he had to nudge Kurt awake so they could prepare for the arena. They stood slowly, stretching their stiff muscles, hoping a hot shower would relax any residual soreness. Blaine kissed Kurt gently while they carried the blankets back to the ladder. “Whatever happens today, I'll be right there with you.”

“I know. That's what scares me.” Kurt worried that Blaine would be so focused on protecting him that he'd get himself hurt. The beginning of the Games was a bloodbath as tributes fought for weapons, food, and supplies from the Cornucopia, the giant horn shaped structure featured every year. The fastest, strongest tributes always reached it first and the tributes who weren't smart enough to run in the opposite direction or were stupid enough to try to fight were the first to fall. Some years, more than half of the tribute pool was killed within the first five minutes of the Games because they tried to for supplies against the career alliance.