2

I haven't heard Dahlia speak at all since that day in the Justice Building. We've been relatively separated until now, when we are just boarding the chariot. Luci, our stylist, actually did a really good job on the both of us. We're both wearing green engineer outfits with goggles, and black gloves. It's simple, but I think it represents District Three pretty well. In terms of facial appearance and hair, Dahlia doesn't look that different. Her skin was already flawless. The only thing that changed was that her wavy red hair was now straight flowing down her back with her bangs just reaching the edge of her eyebrows.

I can't say I don't look any different. Luci put me through some intensive makeover the second she saw me. I remember her walking into my compartment and almost gasping at the sight of me. She started off by giving my messy black hair a much needed trim, but there was nothing she could do about my dark and baggy eyes. She asked her prep team if it was plausible to give me an eye lift and thankfully they all agreed that there wouldn't be enough time for me to recover.

One thing that I do like about Luci is that she is way less obnoxious than Rosche, despite her appearance. She has a blue afro, a golden glow on her skin, and wears some weird disco-style outfit. She'd actually ask me how my life was back in Disctrict Three, about the things I would do, about my father. It surprised me even, to see someone from the Capitol treat me so kindly.

"Haven't seen you in a while," I say to Dahlia. "Luci did a good job with you."

Dahlia turns to me, but she doesn't smile. "Thanks, you too," she responds plainly.

We both fall into an awkward silence until Luci comes up to our chariot.

"Okay, I'm going to need both of you to put on some game faces and act like you are good friends. You won't get the crowd going at all if you both just stand there blankly," she advises.

Dahlia stays silent, but I answer for both of us. "You got it."

The chariots depart, and I look back at Luci who is blowing kisses to Dahlia and I. Once we emerge to the giant crowds of Capitol citizens, Dahlia's demeanor completely changes. She places her arm around my shoulder and I follow suit. With her other arm she begins to wave to the Capitol people cheering for her. I can hear people shouting from the crowds how gorgeous she is. I don't stand out nearly as well as her, but I try to wave to the crowd as well. The crowd on my side of the chariot is much less enthusiastic, but I can hear a decent amount of cheers. How Dahlia is presenting herself to the crowd is actually making me want to cheer for her as well. She did say the one thing she'd enjoy before dying is being all dolled up by the Capitol, and this is probably her getting the most she can out of it.

Once we arrive in the training building, Dahlia definitely gets a few bad looks from the other female tributes. I could see a District One girl glare directly at her with some very jealous blue eyes. She's pretty as well; nice figure, long and curly blonde hair. The thing is she doesn't match the pure and entrancing beauty that Dahlia has. Once Dahlia notices her jealous stare, the District One girl puts on a fake smile and approaches us.

"Hi, I'm Zara," she says as she extends her hand out to Dahlia and I. We both cautiously shake her hand. "My partner and I would like to have you both team up with us during the games." Dahlia and I both look at each other in suspicion.

"Why us?" I ask.

"We like District Three. The two of you could be very useful to us, and obviously we'll help you guys out as well," she says confidently while putting her hands on her hips.

Before I can answer, Dahlia cuts in. "Sounds more like you'll take advantage and dispose us when you're done."

Zara tries to fake being shocked at Dahlia's accusation. "Of course not! We respect the both of you and I think we can both help each other."

There's an obvious tension between Dahlia and Zara. It's like a giant elephant in the room.

"We'll think about it," I answer, trying to alleviate the tension.

Zara gives a forced smile and then returns to her chariot.

We're escorted by Rosche to our floor in the Training Center. He doesn't stop going on about how fabulous we were in the chariot. "You both were so much better than any other District. I really believed you were both lifelong friends!" The training center is way nicer than anything I've seen in District Three. It feels really weird that the Capitol is giving us all this luxury right before they send us to our deaths. Rosche instructs us to meet him in the dining room in one hour, and Dahlia and I head to our separate rooms. The first thing I spot is the gigantic king sized bed with a canopy over it. I immediately fall back on it and look up at the ceiling. It feels so much nicer than my bed at home which feels like a pile of rocks. However, something about it doesn't feel the same. I get off the bed and decide to look around the room a little bit more.

On top of my dresser was the small gear my father gave me along with a note. It read, "You left this on the train. I think it's a fantastic token and would hate for you to lose it. Luci." She signed her name with a little heart at the end. I started to feel bad that I forgot the token my father gave me, but then I realized that Luci just kind of rushed me out of my reaping outfit earlier and didn't give me the chance to remember it at all.

I search the dresser to find an assortment of fancy clothing. Even the pajamas they have here are luxurious and made with a soft silk. Since it's night time already and I'll probably be going to bed after dinner, I decided to change into the pajamas and wear a soft black robe over them. Once an hour was up, I walked over the the dining room and saw that everyone else was dressed for bed except for Rosche. Luci and Dahlia were wearing conservative silk night gowns, while Rosche was in the same outfit that he had on all day. The servants come out and place various dishes on our table. The first thing I reach for are the steamy bread rolls. "They're better with the seafood chowder," Dahlia says as she dips the bread rolls into her soup. I take the ladle and get myself a bowl. I don't think I've ever stuffed my face with food so much in my life.

As dinner progresses, Rosche starts conversing with us. "So, as you both know, District Three does not yet have any victors. That makes it my responsibility to also act as your mentor," he explains. I almost spit the chowder back into my bowl, but I manage to hold it in. I'm doubly screwed if Rosche is my mentor. I was honestly hoping the Capitol would have someone else hired for the job when we got here. "Now you may think I wouldn't fit as a mentor, but I can assure you I've been doing this for six years. I know what I am doing," he assures.

"Is that why every District Three tribute never makes it to the final eight?" Dahlia asks sarcastically. Again, I have to hold myself from spitting out my food. This time because I didn't expect Dahlia to be so forward. It's true though. No person from District Three has made it to the final eight, which is a huge accomplishment. Also, none of the District Three tributes have gotten sponsors in any of the past six years. Probably because Rosche annoys the crap out of everyone.

"Now, now, I just haven't been fortunate with having the most…abled tributes since I became District Three's escort," Rosche defends. Dahlia slams her hands on the table.

"So every tribute from District Three died because they were disabled?" Dahlia yells at Rosche.

Rosche leans back in his chair and does this weird hand motion for the purpose of what looks like defending himself from a possible attack. After a few seconds of Dahlia giving Rosche a deadly glare, she storms out of the dining room.

Luci takes her napkin from her lap, places it on the table, and then gets up out of her seat. "Dinner was delicious, I should probably go now," she says as she rushes out of the room.

I look at Rosche, but his head is turned away from me. I can tell he is trying his best to not look at me; it's killing him inside. I continue to stare at him until he lets out a huge sigh and gives up.

"Don't look at me like that," he snaps. "That girl, pretty as she may be, shows no respect!"

"Maybe people would show you respect if you didn't act like such an obnoxious jerk," I scold.

Rosche turns his head away again, but this time I don't play the staring game. I decide to get up and go look for Dahlia. When I get into the hallway, I notice Luci knocking on Dahlia's door.

"Is she in there?" I ask.

"I don't think so," Luci replies.

We stand there at Dahlia's door for a few moments to check if she is there. "Where else could she go?" I ask.

Luci looks at the elevator. "There's only one other place."

When we get into the elevator, Luci pushes the button for the top floor. "Look, I've been working with Rosche since the games started," Luci starts. "He's an ass, but part of the problem was that none of the tributes wanted to listen to him. It can't hurt to see what he has to say, you've got him or nobody as a mentor." I don't respond to her, but I just let it stir in my head. She makes a good point, nobody probably listens to him because they assume he's a stupid jerk to begin with.

The elevator doors open, and we are brought to the roof of the training center. I see Dahlia sitting over by a small garden patch.

"I think it's best if I leave you two be," Luci says as she heads back into the elevator.

I walk over to Dahlia and sit down by the garden next to her. "Is it worth fighting?" Dahlia asks me quietly.

I pull out the token that my father gave me, and show it to Dahlia.

"My father gave this to me in the justice building. He told me that if I can't fight, then I should survive," I explain. Dahlia grabs the tiny gears and inspects it with her hands. "Maybe we can't fight as well as some of the other tributes, but we can do other things, can't we?" I ask. Dahlia gives the gear back to me.

"I doubt there's going to be any kind of technology in the arena, and even if there was, what would we do with it?" Dahlia asks me. I shake my head.

"No, not just technology. Think about what District Three does. We take simple things, pieces, and put them together to create something fantastic," I explain. Dahlia doesn't respond, but I seem to have her attention. I show her the gear again. "Like this, think of how many things need this tiny little gear in order to operate." Dahlia smiles and nods.

"We use our surroundings. Anything," she says. I nod.

"So what are we going to do about training tomorrow?" Dahlia asks.

That is something that I haven't thought of. It's not like we can just spend our training time engineering some strange device. "We find our strengths," I answer.

I don't really know exactly how training days work other than it's when all of the tributes get together and practice their skills, and then they individually present them to the gamemakers. Maybe if I asked Rosche he would tell us, but I don't really want to speak to that man right now.

"We should get to bed. Long day tomorrow," I suggest. Dahlia nods, and we both stand up.

I start to head for the elevator when Dahlia stops me. "Collen, wait," she says. She walks up to me and gives me a quick peck on the cheek. "Thank you," she says, smiling. I stand there in awe for a few seconds as she gets in the elevator. "You coming?" She asks while in the elevator. I break out of my trance and join her.

Once we get back to the third floor, we both head to our individual rooms with no words being said in between. I plop down on my bed and immediately start to feel myself drifting off. Training days begin tomorrow, and I can almost hear that gong at the start of the games go off.