Afterwards I was left alone in a room in the Justice Building. A bunch of Peacekeepers "escorted" us through the front door when all the fun ended. I had to admit, it was a nice room. Velvet and lace everywhere. To bad it didn't help to keep me calm.
And I needed to be calm, or at least look calm, because the next hour was when they let the tributes family come in to say their goodbyes. And then there will be cameras at the train station, and they'd show all the footage later that night. That's when the tributes got a good idea of their competion.
Jade and Roy came first. Jade didn't say anything, just wrapped her arms around me and squeezed like her arms themselves would protect me. I didn't mention her red puffy eyes. Roy kinda held back from me, like he wasn't really sure what to do. So he talked.
"Artemis, listen. Listen to me. Get your hands on a bow. You shouldn't have a problem getting a knife. But a bow is your best hope."
I said over Jade's shoulder "Sometimes they don't have bows."
He said "Then you make one. They always have wood, ever since the year where half the tributes died of cold." He was right. Maybe six or seven games ago, we spent them watching the players freeze to death in some artic-type landscape. Not much entertainment.
Jade finally released me from her grip, only for Roy to take her place, giving me an awkward, one-armed hug. "You are ten times tougher than all of them combined. You got this."
I was really trying not to cry then. Roy and I weren't exactly brother and sister. Hell, sometimes I'd think he outright hated me. So I said the only thing I can think of. "Take care of them."
Roy pulled back and looked at me, giving me a nod, knowing which "them" I mean.
And then there was a Peacekeeper at our door, meaning that our time was up. Before she could be pulled completely out of the room, Jade turned back to me and finally spoke. "You are going to win."
I was really really trying not to cry then. My eyes watered up and my throat closed shut. It wasn't long after they left that Bette ran in.
"Bette, what are you-"
"No time. They let you have a token of your district in the arena. How about this?" She held out a circular golden pin, a bird of some kind in flight. She pinned it to the collar of my dress. "You'll wear it in the arena, right?"
"Yes." I said it because I wasn't really sure what else to say. She squeezed my hands before she left, and I was left thinking how much of a friend she really had been.
It was a short ride to the train station from the Justice Building. Under normal circumstances, I would be fascinated with riding in a car. To bad these weren't normal circumstances. I was half blinded by the flashes coming from the cameras of the numerous reporters surrounding the station. I feel kind of proud that I managed not to cry.
Kaldur'ahm, on the other hand, had clearly been crying, and just as clearly didn't care how clear it was. I wondered if this was his strategy in the games. To seem weak so that the other tributes won't think him a threat, and then come out fighting. It's worked for a few other tributes before.
For a couple of minutes we were forced to stand in the doorway of the train so that our pictures could be taken, like they hadn't been already. It felt like an eternity before we were actually allowed into the train. Again, under normal circumstances, I would have been fascinated by everything about the train. The speed, how it was even nicer than that room back at the Justice Building. In my own private quarters, there was a dresser filled with very nice clothes. Queen Bee told us everything was at our disposal.
Except I didn't really feel like departing with my mother's dress, not just yet. So when I'd showered, being careful to keep my hair in Jade's braided up do, I put it back on. I finally thought to get a better look at Bette's pin. I recognized the bird when I did.
It's a mockingjay, a kind of slap to the face of the Capitol. You see during the rebellion, the Capitol genetically engineered several species of animals. On of these species was the jabberjay, a nasty thing that could memorize and repeat entire human conversations.
Of course, when the rebels realized what was happening, they fed the jabberjays all kinds of false information. Thinking the jabberjays a failure, the Capitol released them into the wild. They were all male so they weren't worried about them reproducing. They also didn't think that they would instead reproduce with female mockingbirds, creating the mockingjay, which can't recreate human speech, can mimic other human sounds, such as whistling or laughter.
It's said that if a mockingjay hears a voice it finds particuarly beautiful, it will fall silent to listen properly.
Some time later, Queen Bee collected me from my quarters for dinner. She lead me to a fancy dining room. Kaldur'ahm was already sitting at the table. He actually got up and held out a chair for me, waiting to sit back down until I'd sat down. Oliver and Dinah Queen were noticeably absent.
After dinner we were sent back to our quarters so we could watch a recap of the reapings in the other district. I'll only mention the tributes worth mentioning.
From 2, a monster of a boy called Mongul volunteers. A girl with short red hair, half of it shaved from her head, named Shimmer from 5. A very pale, disturbing boy with black hair shaped like horns who wore a maniacal grin the entire time from 10. And perhaps most memorably, from 11, a blue-eyed dark-haired boy who's so young it's obvious that it's his first year. I paid a little more attention when they show District 12. Me volunteering when Jade was called.
The crowds wordless salute to me was written off as a "charming custom", despite there never havng been such a salute before.
All I could do was groan when they showed Oliver Queen's drunkenness. This was the man who was supposed to mentor me, get me sponsors and could be the difference between life and death? It was no wonder Twelve had never had a winning tribute since he became a mentor.
I didn't think I'd last a week in the arena.
How has no one pointed out my chapter flub?!