The stars were the first thing I was met with when I opened my eyes and I immediately found myself gazing through the window beside me. I looked around and saw that I was still in the hovercraft. We should have been in District 2 by now and for some reason we've stopped. Looking outside I could tell we were outside a district because of the high security walls that towered in the distance. It was too dark to read the district emblem that was on the outside of every district gate so I decided to go out and see for myself where I was. Even Mr. Silverbright was nowhere to be seen, though I didn't panic too much on that matter.

I unstrapped myself from the chair and stretch out my muscles I could only guess I've been asleep for at least three hours. A heavy aroma filtered into my nose and looking down I saw a table covered with all sorts of food. I didn't waste anytime indulging myself with the food, it smelled good, it tasted so good. I've never had this kind of food and this much food before in my life. Of all the different assortments of food the lamb stew with dried plums was my favorite, and it was all gone before I knew it. I licked my fingertips savoring in the last remnants of the wonderful dish.

The door to the hovercraft opened and Mr. Silverbright stepped in looking flustered. "Oh my dear you are finally awake and I see you have discovered our dinner for tonight, or at least what's left of it." I felt my face grow a hot red I realized how much I ate and I hardly left any food for him. "Yeah I guess I got carried away sorry." "No need to apologize my dear there's more where that came from." Mr. Silverbright pressed a button on the wall not a second later avoxes came inside carry plates filled with hot food. Is it bad that I feel a particular hunger arise within me again when I see and smell the oncoming food?

"Oh Katniss we will have some new company joining us on our trip to District 2 they will arrive shortly." says Mr. Silverbright. I tried taking my eyes off the steaming food long enough to listen to him. "Company, who are they?" I ask. "A dear old friend of mine's and a tribute that she is escorting from District 11." says Mr. Silverbright. "Okay that's...fine" I say. Mr. Silverbright smiled and nodded his head happy with Katniss positive attitude with the news. "Alright then I'm glad to hear that the little girl from 11 could use good company while we make this journey of ours." "How old is she?" I felt myself become truly interested in this girl from District 11 that I haven't even met yet. "She just turned 12 this month and was lucky to have been chosen to participate in this program." says Mr. Silverbright. What did he mean by lucky? How was receiving training to kill or be killed in a death sentence like the hunger games. No one is lucky no matter how much training they have, even for a Career and Tribute the games are a way of enforcement to keep and remind all the district's their place beneath the Capitol's feet.

I wasn't feeling hungry anymore, I sat down on a cerulean colored couch while Mr. Silverbright ate his dinner. He ate with as much grace and mannerism as anyone from the Capitol. "Oh my this chocolate delight pudding is splendid indeed." I watched him eat the dessert like it was a treat from heaven above. "Katniss have you tried the pudding? It is to die for, so soft and creamy." Even if I wanted some there wasn't any left even for a spoonful. "Oh excuse I guess I got carried away with the pudding it's just so good though." Mr. Silverbright leaned back in chair full from all the food he consumed. I tried not to eat so much that I would get full it's not something I want to get used to. Food like this want always come in this abundance to me, but for the next three months I guess it will be.

Rapid knocking filled the silent hovercraft and Mr. Silverbright wasted no time in opening the door. I looked out the window and saw a little girl standing outside with her bag under the lamp light. A woman whom I recognized as my district's hunger games tribute escort Effie Trinket. The woman smiled and screamed happily when she was met by Mr. Silverbright at the door. The little girl behind her covered her ears against Effie's high pitched screaming. "Come in, come in." Mr. Silverbright ushered in the Effie and the girl.

Effie seemed to have immediately made herself at home tossing her things all over the room, while the little girl sat down in a chair beside me timid and a little scared. The girl reminded me so much of Prim in size and demeanor, but the girl had dark brown skin and brown eyes but other than that she reminded me of my little sister. It's been only a couple of hours since I left home, since I saw Prim and I miss her dearly.

I scooted a little closer to the little girl and softly asked her name. "It's Rue." I could barely hear her quiet reply her voice was so small. "Hello Rue my name is Katniss, I'm from District 12." I say smiling trying to cheer her up. Rue kept her eyes fixed on the worn shoes on her feet and refused to make any further eye contact with me. I know how she must feel to be suddenly thrust with strange people, but I still couldn't understand why I was even bothering with her I hardly ever take well to meeting new people. Though this little girl right here before me seemed even more fragile than I and my father as told me to my strength didn't always have to be my owns. So I wanted to help her in anyway I can, and I wouldn't mind having at least one friend during the training program.

Mr. Silverbright and Effie sat at the glass dinner table lost in their...whatever they talk about stuff, and I still sat by the little girl thinking of something to do. I looked on the table and saw a new bowl of chocolate pudding delight. Maybe she likes sweets? I got up to fix her a bowl and when I reached the table was when Effie truly saw me for the first time. She blinked her long diamond trimmed eyebrows as if trying to clear her vision on if I was really there. "Well you must be the tribute from District 12 I have been hearing so much about from Sterling, how do you do?" I inwardly cringed at her voice while shaking a white gloved hand offered at me. I never really felt like laughing since I left home but her wig was rather comical it was even bigger than Buttercup. Her sweet perfume irritated my nose badly and I tried to get the pudding and leave. "Effie have you tried the chocolate pudding yet it is amazing my dear?" asked Mr. Silverbright. Effie held up her hand waving it in the air. "Oh once I had but it does terrible things to my digestion that I wish to not dwell on much." In my words she was saying that the chocolate pudding gave her the shits and apparently it is a horrid thing to shit even though its also a natural thing to do. Typical Capitol woman nothing more or less. "Effie that color looks so good on you." Mr. Silverbright was gushing over Effie's teal colored dress. "Thank you, thank you it was personal made through my eyes of course, the designer was young but gifted in my opinion but he did the job well enough."

I finally escaped the two Capitol fairies before I suffocated to death in their so called small talk. Rue's eyes widen as she looked at the pudding I had holding before her. "Is that for me?" "Of course it is, I hear it is really good." I smiled down at her showing her my comfort towards her. She reaches out for the white bowl and I hand her the gold spoon she gladly takes them both. "I never had chocolate before." Rue says. "I'm sure it is as good as everyone says go for it, dig in." She takes a small bite tasting it then before I know it the bowl is empty, but at least she was smiling and finally relaxing. "Rue my goodness don't eat like such a slob." Effie looked as if the girl had committed a sin, but she was just hungry.

I saw the look of guilt pass over the girl's face. "Don't listen to her just eat and try to be happy." Rue got up to place her empty bowl on the table and walked back to her chair. Effie was unaware of the affects that her words had on Rue. A woman with her head in the clouds of luxury and endless amounts of food would never understand our struggles in the districts. It was getting harder to try and contain my anger towards those kind of people. I got up and made myself a large plentiful bowl of pudding and sat down beside Effie eating the sloppiest I have ever eaten. She didn't like it her narrowed eyes could cut through the thickest glass I'm sure of that. I looked across the table at Mr. Silverbright and saw a little smile coming from the corner's of his mouth.

Me and Rue sat on the round large couch in the next room by ourselves leaving Mr. Silverbright and Effie alone in the front. The hovercraft was finally back on course to Dsitrict 2, it moved smoothly through the night sky and I loved watching the stars and shifting clouds pass me by. Rue had laid down beside me the pudding gave her and me tummy aches, but that it was damn good it was worth a little tummy ache for the both of us.

I took noticed for the first time at the clothes Rue wore which was a red shirt that had many holes in it her black pants were in the same shape. I wondered if these were the only nice enough clothes she had to wear and her bag was very big. I would have offered her some of my clothes but they would be way to big on them for her. Rue caught me staring at her clothes and picked at a hole on the sleeve of her arm. "They are my sister's clothes, back home we share each others things and she let me wear this along with a few other pairs of clothing I packed." Rue told me that she knew how to mend clothes a skill taught to her by her grandmother, and so all the holes in her clothes would get fixed eventually. I asked Rue if she could fix a pair of my favorite trousers I had packed. She was happy to help and offered to do them now since her stomach was feeling a little better.

I enjoyed watching her stitch up the holes in the pants, her small fingers were very skillful with the thread and needle. It reminded me of the stitching my mom used to do on deep cuts though I could never stand the sight of blood and I always ran away out of the house to leave that kind of work to her and Prim. Back then she was a mom, back then she loved to help others in need. The irony of it was that now she couldn't even help herself. I felt the threat of tears form behind my eyes and I wiped them away before they fell. "Are you alright Katniss?" Rue looked over at me concerned. For someone her age she was too young to feel concerned with anything her life right now should be carefree and fun if it weren't for this world we lived in things could be different, better I think. "I'm fine I just...miss home is all." I didn't want to think of my mom again at least not while I was on this trip I can't afford distractions if I want to be my very best. Though thoughts of home will always be on my mind and, I imagined Prim and mom was in bed by now with Buttercup right at their feet.

Effie's high volume laughter broke through my thoughts. I really felt bad for Rue and how she got stuck with someone like Effie for the next three months. "Katniss are you scared of going to District 2?" asks Rue. I tell her no but I never have imagined ever setting foot inside another district it will take some getting use to I know. "I hear the Careers are really mean and scary and, will kill you if they don't like you." says Rue. I laughed a little at they way she described the Careers. "Who told you all that stuff?" I ask. "My big brother told me before I left, so is it true then?" Her eyes grow wide, she was really scared. It was somewhat true they are trained from young ages to how to fight, how to kill, and protect themselves, and how to use every kind of weapon made. Just from watching previous hunger games gives you a prime example of the brutality of the Careers, it makes since that they are usually the ones who win the games. Even before this training program was accepted by the Capitol, training any tribute for the hunger games used to be illegal but that didn't stop District 1, 2, and 4 from training their tributes, but those were the Districts with the strongest ties to the Capitol so they got away with it.

"They can be brutal, but it's not like we're in the games or anything this is all for training." I say. Rue still looked uneasy but she finally went back to mending my trousers. I never did ask much about the training itself. Well tomorrow we will see just what it all has to offer and I keep telling myself I'm ready to face them all. I always feel bad when I lie to others most of the time but, I'm happy I don't feel so bad when I lie to myself, but I know I'm not even close to being ready.

Before going to bed I wanted to grab a glass of water and I couldn't help myself to eavesdrop on Mr. Silverbright and Effie's conversation. "Honestly Sterling that girl is rude and mannerless in every way possible." "Come now Effie she's not so bad, I think you mistake all that negativity she has for that fire deep with inside her." says Mr. Silverbright. "Fire? What fire?" asks Effie. "She has a good head on her shoulders and I see a passion burning in her heart, she won't be so easy doused, I can assure you of that." I was very stunned to hear my escort talk about me in that way. But why? He is getting paid to escort me, not to like me. "Hmph, I'm sure there will be a Career or two who will smother that fire of hers, she just needs respect and learn when to conceal that anger and aggression." "She seems perfectly fine to me, growing up in that district of her's I imagined that attitude is what has been keeping her and her family alive this far." says Mr. Silverbright. Effie just took a small sip of her liquor shaking her head at his words.

I guess Mr. Silverbright knows me a little. I never have been I push over I could always hold my own and that fiery attitude of mines was like a superhuman power to me that I try to use for good. So if I were to unleash it on some unsuspecting Careers it wouldn't be so bad, I mean they are the villains right?

I decided to not get that glass of water and turned to go back to join Rue in the other room. The little girl was on her way to sleep curled up under a homemade quilt, I assumed her grandmother made it for her. It was lovely though it was purple and blue adorned with mocking jays and musical notes. The Mockingjay? A symbol of the Capitol's failures, at least one of them. Picking up my pants I admire Rue's work they looked brand new. "You like the new fix up?" asks Rue. "It's amazing thanks." "Your welcome I love sewing almost as much as I like singing." she says. I wonder what kind of life she has back in her district, for her to love singing her family must be really close and happy despite the hardships. District 11 is almost as bad as my own district, but certainly not the worst.

I lay down across from Rue on the couch and stare up at the ceiling, I thought it was my eyes playing tricks on me or something but the ceiling really did change into different colors. One second it was blue than red the next, with each fading color it shimmered like water into the next one. "Katniss?" I hear Rue's soft voice call my name from underneath her quilt. "Yeah?" I ask. "Let's stick together okay?" I smile looking at the girl with her eyes closed ready to fall asleep and, I brush back her soft black curls. "Okay, from this day and until infinity we'll stick together." She whispers a thank you to me and I'm thankful as well that I have found a new friend in this unforgiving world of ours. I feel almost ready to face it all now and I couldn't wait for tomorrow to come, nor could that fire that Mr. Silverbright praised so much about it burned impatiently for the next day as much as I did.