Chapter one- the training centre.

Glimmers P.O.V

I looked up into marvels eyes. He was beaming at me in a strange yet engaging sort of way.

"You ready Glim?"

He nudged me in the side making me jerk back in a small laugh.

"Only if you are"

I replied grabbing onto his hand briefly and then immediately letting go.

This is it the first time I'd be in a room with all of the tributes (other than seeing them for a brief moment in the chariots). I had seen their faces on the way up to the capitol but knew very little about what they were genuinely like out of their home district.

I was absolutely buzzing my whole body was brimming with wonder. On the outside I was trying to maintain my strong position but on the inside I was practically clawing at the elevator doors to open.

The glass doors slid open revealing a large transparent chamber. Both of us took a last glance and our temporary home.

"We will be together in the arena wont we?"

Marvel looked at me as the elevator doors closed.

"Of course marvel! You big idiot that's why were both here isn't it? To finally have a chance to be the representatives for district one? to bring glory to our district, Or to die trying, to give them a good games? Right?"

He smiled and I sensed a hint of agitation.

"Are we pairing with anyone else?" he questioned.

I bit my tongue I had been thinking of the district two boy ever since I'd seen him on the television. He was un-realistically perfect and looked like the winning sort of person. The things I would do to have him as an ally.

"It depends." I say although im begging myself to stick to the district two tributes as they both looked like the sort who became 'career' tributes. A name which the capitol gave to the tributes which ally together to kill the others and giving them a clear path to victory. The walls were slipping past our eyes as we descended to the training we heard a faint thud the doors slid open revealing ten pairs of eyes scanning our every move. I recognised the district two tributes immediately who were peering at us like hawks eyeing up our bodies. I gave a brief stare to the district two boy, with no emotion, just pure innocent eyes with no hidden thoughts or words. Hopefully that should keep him interested for a while longer. Marvel was looking the way of the weapons as if he wanted to run as fast as possible to grab his most beloved spears. If it wasn't for the others watching he would have probably been hopping about like a child on its birthday. I sniggered under my breath at the thought and realized that id broke the silence with my laughter. Inside I died. I can't believe I just laughed in front of everyone im such an idiot.

"What's funny" Marvel whispered avoiding any other eye contact other than mine.

He made me feel a little less embarrassed and I just pointed in the direction he was looking.

"You! You're like a kid at Christmas." Marvel smiled and nodded his head still holding my eyes.

I heard the district two boy laugh and tap the girl next to him.

"I hold dibs on the tall guy." The district two tributes laughed and I decided I liked them I looked up laughing softly to myself and marvel took me by the arm and walked over to them. They looked at us slightly unsure.

"You're district ones right? I remember seeing you on the train." The boy said.

He was just as perfect close up. He looked almost like a Greek god in the chariot rides.

"Im marvel and this is Glimmer. You guys are two's right?" marvel sounded so calm it made me feel incredibly inferior and in a way agitated.

"Cato and this is clove" he gestured to the reasonably small girl next to him.

"Who we waiting for?" marvel asked.

"Seven to twelve" Clove's voice determined that she was approximately the same age as me and marvel.

"Right" marvel said. "Well they better come quickly because that room looks too fun."

Cato smirked showing his luscious face curve like and angel.

"You guys fighters?" his emotion was impossible to read.

"Guess you'll have to see" I said.

"Guess I will" His gaze locked into mine and I almost froze completely it wasn't fear it was just complete and utter jealously. He was beautiful.

I heard footsteps and turned to see the remaining districts being led down the corridor by a tall, dark skinned woman with loveless green eyes.

"Welcome Tributes to the training centre, feel free to learn and use any of the equipment we have available and DO NOT involve yourselves in any form of fighting during these sessions. You'll have plenty of time for that later on. You will find experts on each station so if in need of any advice please question to them."

The lady's 'emotion Filled' voice ended and she turned her attention to the training room.

"This way please." She said in her wonderful mono toned voice.

Marvel fast walked past everyone making the three of us laugh and we followed abruptly after pushing past the district twelve brat who volunteered for her precious little sister. I lunged for the bow and arrows stacked neatly in the centre of the room facing a wall full of targets and dummies.

I readied myself and pulled back the string of the bow. Memories of my many years training flashed into my head and I softly pushed them aside. I inhaled the tangy taste of metal and placed the arrow into position. My eyes locked on the bull's eye of the dummies head and I let the arrow fly. The feathered end was just showing and the pierced end had gone directly into the centre.

"Good shot." Cato's voice exploded behind me.

I turned to see Cato, Clove and Marvel had been watching me.

Cato had his arms folded across his chest and marvel was clinging onto around several different kinds of high tech spears he'd found.

"You any good at hand to hand?" Cato said.

"Im Reasonable."

"Good" he sniggered and threw me a sword. I clung onto the bow with my left hand and grabbed the handle that had just been thrown to me. Clove took my place and threw five knives in directly the same place in five different dummies.

"I'll look after your bow, should i?" I nodded and gave her my bow.

Cato swung his sword in a figure of eight looking a bit too professional and backed up into the hand-to-hand combat area.

"Ladies first." He readied himself.

I lunged the sword forward hoping to get him off guard but he immediately blocked it elbowed me in the nose and pushed me back into the wall. I felt a warm hum of blood pulse in my temples and charged back swinging for the right of his head but he blocked it grabbed my wrist with his free hand and twisted my arm around. I heard his laughing and anger broke into me. I kicked back into his crotch and he flew backwards swearing his head off. Then as soon as I turned to look around I found myself in a head lock. I kicked and squirmed but he kept me in place.

"get-off-f" I choked and he let me free I rolled over, laying him underneath me, and let my face hover millimetres over his face. His eyes told me everything. He looked shocked as if he was expecting me to do something. But I just laughed and laughed "piss off!" he laughed back and shoved me in the face which made me shuffle off him. We sat on the ground mats composing ourselves.

"You're amazing" I looked at him panting and rubbing my nose.

"Thank you" he cocked his head back and stood up sticking out a hand for me to hold. "not too bad yourself" I stared into that beautiful face and wished I didn't look as weak as I did. I helped myself up and looked at him more seriously than I'd expected. My voice sounded sweet but inside I was still feeling a little bitter- the funny thing is I didn't know why. I wasn't angry or jealous or hurt but I just felt…funny. We turned at the perfect time to see marvel hurling a spear and taking off the head off a dummy. Cato flicked his head as if to tell me too follow. So I did. We gathered by the left wall and marvel and clove soon joined us.

"I saw what you two are like and im pretty sure we'd live longer if it was us four together." Cato nodded at clove who nodded back in acceptation.

"I agree" I nodded at marvel who gave me a cheeky wink and then turned back to Cato.

"Being an alliance always means we fight together and we stay together until the very end. We'll hunt down the others and if it comes down to the final four of us then so be it. But in the meantime we should make the best show possible and try to help each other's back ok?" everyone seemed to automatically appoint Cato as our sort of leader which added to the funny feeling inside of me.

"Let's get training!" Marvel yelled and made a kind of cheer in the air with his fist.

A red headed girl watched us from the poisonous berries stand and I absorbed the attention loving every second of it.

We were the careers.

And I wanted everybody to know it.