In a few hours the Hunger Games movie will be released in theaters!
Kayden and I agree to spend most of training just listening. There are certain expectations for twins, I suppose. We stick together, dress alike, and don't speak to anyone but each other. This isn't how we normally act, but this is a game of survival.
Instead, we listen to the other Tributes. Learn about them, their skills, and their alliances. I'm fine with this. If I talk too much, I might blurt out how scared I am, how I'm going to lose my twin, and then I'll fall apart. Instead, I put all my energy into learning.
District One is a threat only because they are Careers. The boy is younger than most, Reaped instead of a volunteer, with only a few years of training to back him up. The girl, her name is Velvet or something, concerns herself too much with trivial things. Her hair, her appearance. You'd think she was a Capitol girl.
District Two, as usual, is vicious. Ajax and Alana, I think. Ajax is more than twice my size, with strong muscles from years of training. He's eighteen. Alana is fifteen, slender but dangerous, and she scares me almost more than huge Ajax.
In District Three, only the girl I remember. I don't know her name, but there's a shine in her eyes that hints she's dangerously smart.
District Four are typical Careers, tanned from years at the sea, with the characteristic good looks of their District. It's the girl who approaches me and Kayden one day. "Well, well. District Ten's little twins." The cruel edge in her tone cuts straight to my bones, and I glance at Kayden. "You know you won't have each other in the arena, right?" She laughs, walking away. I know from then on that if I am capable of hating anybody in this arena, it is the cruel girl from Four.
Most of the other Districts make no impression on me whatsoever. An occasional Tribute, the boy from Seven or the girl from Nine, strike me as unusual, stronger or more skilled then most of their counterparts. Some, from the middle or lower Districts, are obviously Bloodbaths. I find myself wondering if 'Ten's little twins' are viewed the same by our competition.
Our individual sessions with the Gamemakers come quickly enough. It strikes me for the first time how far down Ten is. Nineteen teenagers, including my twin brother, perform before me. Finally, my turn comes around.
When I walk in, the Gamemakers are mostly paying attention, although they seem to be edging on boredom. Sable and I have already decided to show them everything. No matter what I score, I'm a target, because I'm a Tribute. But Kayden and I need sponsors.
I start at the door, sprinting across the room. The training room seems larger than before, with nobody in it, but I'm a fast runner. I reach the slingshots, snatching one up easily, and turn back even as I'm stopping. I start to shoot at the targets, missing one or two but mostly hitting.
The Gamemakers dismiss me eventually, and I walk towards the elevator. Hopefully, that was enough to get some support. If not, sympathy for the twins may get us what we're missing.
I stop at my door, thinking hard. It's more than just a game of survival, I think. It's a game of manipulation. Manipulating the Capitol to get support, manipulating the other Tributes to outsmart them, manipulating the Gamemakers to make ourselves seem better than me are. I walk inside, like I'd never stopped. Manipulating the Capitol. These thoughts are treasonous.
When scores are shown that night, I'm not surprised. The Careers score in their average 8-10 range, everyone else in the lower numbers. Kayden pulls a seven, I have a six. Not bad.
But when we go to sleep, apprehensive for the interviews tomorrow night, all I can think about is that these lower numbers will be altered. They'll make the least skilled Tributes into killing machines.
In a few days, twelve of us will "randomly" be, basically, mutts.
I hope it's not Kayden or I.
I will not be updating until Monday or Tuesday, so apologies in advance for the wait!