[Sorry, it has been a while, and I've still not got to the action. Details, details... But I am going to try and post more frequently now, so I hope you enjoy the last few bits before the action. Leave a review if you have any opinions - thanks!]
"Good morning, Corin, you obviously slept well! Now that you're both up, let's eat! You've got a busy day ahead today – it's your first training session!" Rhianne chirped as Corin entered the dining room of District 2's apartment, causing Raven to spin away from the window and scan the room before spotting him. Everything was bold, rich and so, so perfect here, she thought constantly. Themed with colours of black, blue and silver, the whole of the second floor was impeccably clean and tidy, with everything Raven could ever have wished for: soft beds, comfortable couches, piping hot showers and magnificent views were only a few of the things she could name. And there was technology for everything under the sun. What did people actually do around here, when everything was done at the press of a button? Perhaps a Victor's life would be richer than she had thought before.
Bringing herself out of her thoughts, she went to sit down for another meal; the food being another of the things she had embraced eagerly in the Capitol. Last night was a blur, but after the parade she and Corin had eaten like royalty. She moved from her spot at the window to sit next to her friend, who was running his hands through wavy, dark auburn hair, and eyeing the table in anticipation.
The chairs in the dining area were a stylish black material which was incredibly thin, twisted into a seat, and yet surprisingly strong. The table Raven was seated at was long, shiny and flawless; and more importantly laden with all sorts of delicious-smelling, exotic-looking foods. She had to admit, despite missing her home and family, that the Capitol was beautiful. Even though she had so much to think about, she had never slept as well as she had in her room, which was full of beautiful pictures, clothes, furniture and a bed softer than anything she could imagine. Corin was still dressed in clothes similar to what she had slept in, so she guessed they had been assigned matching sleepwear. Now, she wore a thin but warm blue tunic belted tightly at the waist over a pair of soft dark leggings and leather sandals.
She looked around the table. Corin, Rhianne, Tigris, Lyme and Orion were already eating, but she didn't know where to start. Noticing her hesitation, her friend turned to her.
"Try one of these – I know you'll love them." He coaxed, handing her a platter of golden brown balls of soft bread. Smiling a little, Raven reached out to take one before biting into it, somewhat tentatively, whilst Corin waited expectantly. After a first pleasant taste of soft, sweet bread, a look of surprise lit her face as rich, glorious chocolate oozed into her mouth. "Amazing." She muttered to herself as she helped herself to another, grinning at Corin. The two carried on eating, encouraged by the lighter mood. Lyme cleared her throat and the two looked up.
"As Rhianne said, today is the first day of training. It is my job to help you with it in every way I can, so you can get a good score in your private sessions on the third day, and then hopefully go on and defend yourself in the Games. Besides your skills helping you to survive, you're much more likely to get the sponsors to help you, and save your life, if you have a good score – they want to back the winner, remember? So, to start off, do you want to train together, or separately?"
Before Raven could finish her mouthful and speak, Corin replied. "Raven already knows a lot about fighting, and I don't. I'd only end up slowing her down – she wants to impress everyone, doesn't she? So we'll train separately." Lyme nodded and rose from her seat, allowing a dark-haired woman who had not yet spoken nor moved to come and clear her place. Suddenly not hungry, Raven pushed her plate towards the woman and followed Lyme towards a seating area in the centre of the room, Corin close behind.
"I could help you!" she hissed to him, as she flung herself down onto a sofa. Lyme looked at her disapprovingly, but out of the corner of her eye, Raven thought she saw Tigris look rather thoughtfully at her from where she was leaning on a large marble column with Orion, talking quietly.
"No, if he's right about your talents, then you'd better not train together. If anything, you'd make him look worse. People would compare you and begin to target him."
Abashed, Raven looked down at her hands, silent. Satisfied, Lyme carried on.
"So, what can you two do?" Corin looked down at his hands silently, biting his lip in what could only be nervousness. Raven resisted the urge to comfort him.
"I'm quick, fairly strong and I can use most weapons: swords, a bow, throwing knives, a spear…" she began to list, without a hint of arrogance in her voice. Lyme held up a hand, and she stopped abruptly, whilst the other adults in the room stopped to stare at her.
"I think," Lyme said slowly, "that I should train you privately. Completely privately." She added, before anyone else could speak. Sullenly, Raven looked down at the floor, annoyed by her dismissal. The mentor's eyes narrowed immediately, seeing her near rebellious manner.
"You want to win? Well, listen to me," she snapped suddenly, moving in a flash to grasp Raven's chin with strong, thin fingers. "You will be - you need to be -separate from everyone, especially Corin. You will dress differently, you won't speak to him outside of this apartment, and you don't acquaint yourself with anyone. Understand?"
With a bitter taste in her mouth, Raven wrenched her face free and nodded, sending ripples down her long, black hair. She could see her best friend looking at her from his seat, but she refused to meet his eye. This was his fault, she knew. She would have happily trained with him and he knew it.
"Actually, we like to work with themed outfits." Tigris interrupted, with an almost menacing tone to her purr. Lyme's head snapped to look at her, but the stylist didn't flinch.
"Fine, but tone it down during training." She replied gruffly. "Raven, go and wait in your room. Tigris will go through some clothes with you while I talk to Corin."
Raven tried to look calm as she left the room, but as soon as she was out of sight she ran as fast as she could to her room and slammed the door behind her. None of this was turning out how it was supposed to. She had thought all this would be easy. But training hadn't even started and she already felt alone. For the first time she realised that not only would Corin and her be separated by the end of the Games, but their friendship would die in the Capitol. She would lose her closest companion, the closest to a brother she'd ever get. There was nothing she could do. She remembered Orion talking about tattoos, and wondered if she could have one to remind her of their bond. But surely Lyme would forbid it. It was hopeless.
Quick, clear footsteps alerted the girl to somebody approaching. It was probably one of the avoxes, she thought. Rhianne had said they were traitors, but Raven didn't think they looked particularly threatening. Instead of thinking of them like that, she simply thought of them as silent servants. Silent or not, they couldn't see her in this state. Hastily, she wiped her eyes and face with the back of her hand and shook her hair out into something she hoped looked presentable. Right on cue, Tigris swept in through the door, followed by another one of the 'silent servants' who was carrying clothes. Raven stood up immediately, but Tigris held up a finger, silencing her before she knew what to say.
"No, I don't know why you can't train together, and quite frankly, it's not my problem." She said firmly to her, tawny eyes fixed on her green. "My job is not to hear about your battle woes, it's to dress you for them. You know that any relationship you two might have had at home is unimportant here, so why are you trying to preserve it? I have never known a volunteer as confident as you to be so shaken up by something like this. You're getting upset for all the wrong reasons - and I can't help you at all, so don't bother asking me. I'm not wasting my time doing Rhianne's job."
Raven stood open-mouthed as the stylist unfastened the buttons on her tunic and pulled away her belt, speechless. Everything Tigris had said made perfect sense. She didn't speak until she had been dressed in a tight black and silver top that stretched and adjusted itself with her every movement, and equally flexible grey leggings. Once the woman who was helping Tigris had laced both of the tough, but comfortable leather boots all the way up her calves, she tested her outfit a little, bouncing a couple of times on her toes before throwing an imaginary knife, dropping and rolling to the side. When she rose, she found herself once again focused on her task. Training. Fighting. Winning the Games.
"Thank you, this is perfect." She admitted to her stylist, a little sheepishly, who was stood with her arms folded, watching. Tigris nodded and twitched her whiskers a little in response. She motioned with a clawed finger for her to turn around so she could tie her straight, black hair into a long, smart ponytail.
"I want you to listen to Lyme about Corin. It's not worth it, Raven." Tigris purred persuasively from behind her. "I've done this job for many Games, and I know a winner when I see one. You don't need Corin, or any of the tributes there. You need to focus, and friends, no matter who they are, won't help you this time."
"Exactly." Lyme's voice replied nonchalantly.
Raven spun around to see her mentor leaning casually against the door. She hadn't even heard the woman come in. "Lyme, I'm sorry, I – "
"I understand, Raven. I was a tribute once, you know." Relieved, Raven let out a small sigh. "I'm ready now. What do you want me to do?"
"Quarter to ten, people! Come on, now!" Rhianne's voice was getting higher in pitch, the more tense she got. The training started at ten, and District 2 was never late. Raven was already stood by the crystal elevator, alert and ready after her talk with Lyme. She breathed deeply and tossed her ponytail over her shoulder as the blue-haired woman came around the corner with Corin close behind, dressed in a pale blue shirt and loose brown trousers. She noticed, uncomfortably, that he looked pale, and was already sweating. Again, she immediately felt she should comfort him, but pushed the thought away again, Lyme's face fixed in her mind. Seeing her glance at him, Corin smiled nervously back at her, but she kept her face blank and focused instead on her instructions for the training. "If you're skilled in weapons, look to the survival skills to learn, but don't forget to practise combat. Work to intimidate, but keep your tricks in your sleeve."
She breathed deeply as they got in the elevator. This would be her comfort zone – there was no need to panic. Her eyes flew open as the doors shut, allowing her a last glimpse of Tigris, whose satisfied smile calmed her thoughts once more. They began the decline down to the underground levels where the training would take place. She looked out at the Capitol and smiled to herself. Everything was fine.
On the other side of their escort, Corin swallowed and bit his lip hard. Blood trickled onto his tongue, leaving him with both an ache in his heart and a bitter, bitter taste in his mouth.