Alex and I are led out of the Justice Building and onto a sleek, silver train. As I walk inside, my jaw drops. The carriages are huge, each as big as a whole floor of my house. The walls are covered in regal patterns, some of which are made of silk or velvet and thick carpet covers the floor. We're told that we have a carriage each, mine to the right, Alex's to the left. We're told to freshen up before diner. I go to my room and my shock doesn't subside. There is a double bed (though I'm sure it should be called a triple bed), a wardrobe filled with expensive clothes and an ensuit bathroom. It's weird to think that in the capitol people can afford this luxury without a second thought, yet in the districts we must carefully consider every cent we spend. I pull off my clothes and get a shower, but the buttons are so confusing – who could find a use for so many options? Finally I manage to find a setting that gets me clean, and I find the least luxurious set of trousers and a pale blue shirt. I do not want anything to do with the capitol. But that's a problem. After the games, the victor never really leaves the capitol's hands. Like a cat playing with a mouse, you think you've won and can get free, but then it drags you back in again. I remember Finnick Odair who won the games at 14 and was loved by everybody, so after a couple of years he was tossed all over the capitol like a ragdoll. You've got no choice when it's you against President Snow, especially with your family at risk.

Diamondus comes in and tells me its diner; it is obvious she dislikes my choice in clothes. Reluctantly, I stroll in to see Alex and Diamondus sitting at a table with our mentor, Julius. He won the 77th games, and it isn't difficult to see why. He's 22 now, and so was at the best age for the games when he won. Still, he has muscles that can be seen through his tight shirt. His games were in a desert, so there was nowhere for the weak tributes to hide and only a few cactus plants. It was one of the shortest games in history, partly to do with the fact that there was no food or water at the cornucopia and parachutes could only carry medicine and weapons. An almost record number of 16 tributes were killed at the bloodbath, leaving only the careers, Julius and a district 8 girl who had incredible stamina. Two days later she was killed by a mutation that looked like a huge eagle with venomous, razor sharp teeth. Julius kept running from the cornucopia, with just a sleeping bag, a rope, a knife and a packet of matches to use. Eventually, he stopped, and it looked like he was about to go crazy, when another mutt attacked him. It looked like he was going to die, but somehow he managed to get his knife out fast enough to kill the mutt, which had ripped off his arm with its talons'. He ate the meat and drank its blood. Then he broke off the venomous teeth and put them in his pack, and used its skin as a bandage. Three of the careers died of dehydration, another from madness, leaving the boy from district 1 and the girl from 2. The girl slit the boy's throat in his sleep, and it was the final two. They both fell asleep, but were woken up by an enormous tidal wave that came from all edges of the arena. Julius had the idea to tie himself to a near-bye cactus. The girl from 2 was not so lucky, and was sleeping inside the cornucopia. The waves slammed on it from all sides, and she was drowned/ smashed to pieces at the same time. I remember that games well, as I was 14 and a girl from my maths class at school was reaped.

I sit down and it's obvious that Alex is intimidated by my size. He's 15, but hasn't had much of a growth-spurt yet, so is at least a foot shorter than me.

"So, you got any tips about strategy?" I ask straight away, before Julius can speak.

He smiles, "Well, that depends. Do you have any talents?"

"I'm strong and can learn fast. I run quite quickly as well, but I don't know about survival. Or weapons to be honest." I say, before Alex can talk.

"I think I'm quite clever." Says Alex. I know he's lying, but I'm not going to say. He cares more about his looks and popularity than his grades at school, and the general population won't be friends with a geek. That's one of my advantages – I don't care what anyone thinks about me.

"Also, I'm quite fast and I bet I could blag my way into the careers." He smirks.

Julius shakes his head, to Alex's surprise. "You won't be able to get into the careers unless you've got a real talent, and even then they'll stab you in the back once you've been used. The careers aren't all they're cracked up to be." He states as he turns to me. "You at least look like you might have a chance, if you use your brains. But you seem like someone who doesn't like company, and for the pre-games it is essential that you get sponsors."

"You won without sponsors." I argue.

"Yeah, but I'd be better off if I had had them." He sighs, lifting his sleeve to show a fake arm. I gasp, no-one had ever told me about that before. At that moment a man in a smart suit comes in pushing a trolley filled with dishes. A girl dressed similarly loads them onto the table, and Julius laughs at Alex and my shocked faces. There is so much food! This would be enough to last a family of 7 at home for a week. The sad thing is, I know plenty of family's that size who won't even get this much food in the next fortnight. I dig in, trying to eat the least filling, protein filled food. I could go very hungry in the arena, whatever it is, so it's best to put on some weight before-hand. Alex comes from one of the richest families in the district, so he doesn't know hunger and is stupid enough to go for filling carbohydrates like rice and pasta. Even I, who hasn't ever really gone hungry, know that I need to put on some weight.

"So, are you excited about the capitol?" Diamondus asks us, in her stupid capitol voice.

"I guess." I murmur, shrugging.

"Oh I'm sure you'll love it!" she trills; "It's so beautiful; it makes your district look like a slum or something" she laughs. Julius, Alex and I don't.

"Anyway," she doesn't seem to see that we are offended "as soon as you get to the capitol, your prep team will make you look beautiful. It's amazing how much they can make your looks, improve." She looks at me with purpose. I pick up a chicken drumstick and purposely eat it as savagely as I can. She cringes and continues.

"Then you get to see your chariot outfits, which I'm sure will be fabulous!" she grins. "Then you have three days of training, and on the third you'll get your individual time with the gamemakers to show them what you can do. You'll get your score, and the next day you'll have your interview with Casear!" she says excitedly.

"And the next day we get slaughtered!" Alex says sarcastically. We all stare at him, surprised in his change of attitude. Diamondus looks hurt and even though Alex was speaking my thoughts, I feel angry with him for upsetting her.

"Well no, you'll enter the games and have just the same chance as everybody else." Diamondus tries to give 23 children dying a positive spin. Of course, I know that there is no way that Alex is coming home. I don't know about myself. Any day before today I didn't really want to give in to the capitol and kill. To live with those memories would surely be worse than death. But after my mother's talk in the Justice Building, and Codend's kiss (I get butterflies just thinking about it), I really don't know. Would it be worth it? Of course, even if I want to win there's still only a slim sliver of a chance that I will.

I excuse myself and leave the table to go to my room. I turn on the T.V to watch the reaping's of the other tributes, to see the faces of everyone that will have to die if I want to see district 3 again.

I hope you enjoyed this, so please read and review! Do you want a list of all the other tributes, or just from Volta's point of view, so you only read the few she remembers? Please review with what you want! Thank you again for reading, Bye!