I stand in the training room, bow and arrow in my hands, aiming at the pale, white dummy. These things are supposed to look real? I thought the capitol was better than this. Well, this is the Games, anyway. I'm just about ready to let go and put an arrow in the dummy's heart when a head pops into my vision. Cato. I thought he had something going with Clove… guys had liked me for the longest time. It gets old fast. Even when I was little, Marvel had a crush on me. That guy is a joke! Sure, he is good with a spear, but what happens when he doesn't have one?
"What do you think you're doing?!" I yell at him, frustrated by the fact I almost killed him.
"Annoying you and it's working," he responds as he gives me the famous smirk.
"True," I say lowering my bow. I don't need to kill someone before the games.
"So, you like the arrow I see." He states.
"And you like swords, the difference please?" I ask, annoyed. His annoying game is totally working.
"We both have our weapons." He states. What goes on in his mind?
"Yes, can you do anything without the sword though?" I ask.
"Like what?" He asks, ready for the challenge.
"Hmm," I say looking around the training center for inspiration," I bet I could get to the top of the net faster than you!" I challenge, ready to win.
"I'd rather not," he says embarrassed.
"Oh, you scared you might fall and break your arm?" I say ready to fight.
"No!" He says, still embarrassed.
I grab my arrow and aim for his head, knowing I wouldn't actually let go. He seems frightened and backs away. I turn to the ugly, pale dummy and shoot. I shot right at the heart. I'm glad I hit the target considering Cato might be watching. Then I feel the warm, masculine hands on my shoulders. He definitely saw.
"Not bad for a girl who's named after the sparkle in gems. I thought you would hit the wall," he says, smirking again. He is obviously into me, but I was sure he had something going with clove. Might as well play along, I need allies.
"Funny," I say sarcastically, "how are you with your sword?" I ask putting both of my hands on his arm. I forgot how easy it was to flirt. I tried not to in district one. I focused on training and getting into the games, not getting guys. Sure, I may be pretty, but I know what I want.
"Why? You want to see?" He says, winking.
"Sure," I say, ready to see if he actually knows what he is doing.
Cato proceeds to get a sword from the stand holding the weapons. It looks like it was made for him. It fits perfectly in his hands. Or maybe his hands were made for the sword.
He walks over to the row of dummies that are placed in a half-circle shape. He takes a deep breath, grips the sword tighter, a runs. He slices arms, heads, and legs off with precise movements. No amount of energy seems to go to waste. The very last dummy stands unscathed. I wonder what he'll do. He goes over, sword ready to kill, and stabs the dummy in the heart. I'm glad I'm trying for an alliance with him.
"Not bad, huh Glitter?" He asks, giving me a new nickname.
"No, not bad at all. But, you don't need help with your showing off," I joke, "You're really good at doing that."
"Well, you're just dazzled by my strength. And, my good looks," he says shooting me a pose that capitol men do. I can't help but smile, he does look pretty good.
Cato leads me to the couch in the break room, where we end up talking for an hour. We really should be training. Isn't this training though? I mean, I'm making an ally here, plus we are totally flirting with each other. It is nice just telling each other about our lives, no pressure that we may end up killing the other person in the end.
I tell him about my family and how I was ready for the games. He tells me how he and clove trained together since they were ten. He mentions that they are like family, brother and sister, and work well together. Our conversation goes on like this until we decide to go and train, because that's why we are here.
