Chapter 4
I had lunch in the large district 12 dining room, where I was served by Avoxes. I knew better than to talk to them. My mother had been teaching me how to behave in the Capitol since I was a little girl. Even when I saw the redheaded Avox girl and Darius, I kept my mouth shut. It was horrible to think of the torture that they had all been through, even though it was almost certain I would be through something similar. I just could not afford to think that I could be dead within the next week. I couldn't. I had to stay focused. For Thresh. For mom and dad. For district 12. For Liam. And for god's sake, for me. After lunch, I was escorted by some ever-friendly peacekeepers to my bedroom. *sarcasm*. It was not friendly. My prep team came in, and took me to "beauty base zero" again. This time, I was coated in a goldish-red shimmering dust, which my prep team called "fire dust". I'm praying it's not flammable. When James came in, he had a black garment bag with him. He told me to close my eyes, so that he could blindfold me. I swear, I was almost certain that he was going to light me on fire. Not a good feeling. I heard him unzip the bag, and he told me to step into what felt like a dress. Well, it was obviously a dress. There were no leg holes. After the dress was done up, James removed my blindfold. I slowly opened my eyes, and saw the beauty that he had created. A peachy-orange floor length dress, with a skirt made of flowey tulle hung on my body. The top was incrested with amber stones in the shape of tiny teardrops. I couldn't speak. The dress was so beautiful, I felt out of place being in it. But then, James started to do my hair. And my makeup. And my nails. I looked the part more every minute. Finally, he placed a large, amber pendant necklace around my neck. I was in shock. I was not seeing myself in this mirror, it was someone else. Before I could say anything, James said "They wanted the next generation of your mom, we'll give it to them. They want to re-create her games, we will, Girl in Flames." Girl in Flames. Wow, if I made it out of here alive, I would certainly have a name. I walked out of my room only to see Liam, looking more handsome than I had ever seen. He was wearing a charcoal grey suit, with a cummerbund to match my dress, as well as amber cufflinks. This, I thought, were by far the most normal chariot ride costumes EVER. I mean, it may as well be the interviews! But somehow, I knew that James had a trick up his sleeve. I waited around, with mom, dad, Liam, and some horses. Now was my real chance to look at my competition. Some cows from district 10, some lumberjacks from 7, and there we have Jacob Odair. Hmm, seems the Capitol is completely trying to copy the third quarter quell. Jacob is wearing a fishing net. Like father like son, I suppose. I just find it outlandish. His partner, who's name I'm not sure of, wears something quite similar. Jacob strolled on up to me quite sure of himself, and had the guts to say "Hello, Rue. I'm Jacob. Would you like a sugar cube?" Mom, who was standing behind the horse, overheard and burst out laughing. Almost everyone within earshot of her stopped to stare. Who was the outrageous person laughing uncontrollably, days away from the most tragic event ever?(For the people in that room, anyways,) Once they saw it was her, they went back to their own live. I looked at her, confused, then at Jacob. Then mom, then Jacob again. I didn't get it. Since they were too busy laughing, I decided that I should ask dad. "Dad," I started, "Why are mom and Jacob Odair laughing about some sugar cubes?" Dad looked at me in disbelief. "Woah, woah, woah. Sugar cubes? Ah, that's an old one. When Finnick first met your mom..." He started talking, but then remembered the horrible fight that had followed that event. Since no one would tell me, I decided to forget it and move on. During the chariot ride, I felt something stir in my dress. Not exactly what I was hoping for, not everyone wants their dress to stir. Suddenly, small, motorized fans on the underside of my dress began to blow synthetic flames up over my head that I was not even aware of. I looked to the stands, and I saw mom, beside James. James was smiling triumphantly, so proud of what he had accomplished. Mom, on the other hand, was shaking her head slightly, with a "Should have known better" smile smothered on her face. I wondered why it was always the girls who got the cool costumes. But then again? It was really only the district 12 girls. Maybe we just had the cool stylists. After the chariot ride, we headed back into the justice building and went up the elevator to the 12th floor. Liam whispered to me "Good job tonight. Your dress was beautiful. Just like you." I looked at him for a moment, then softly kissed his cheek. "Thanks. You were great too. Think they're buying the act?" "Of course. It's no longer an act." Liam pressed his lips against mine, and I was just able to let out an "Oh yeah, that's right." I smiled, but then remembered I probably shouldn't have. He followed me into my room, and I fell asleep beside him, still dressed up in my chariot outfit, and with all my makeup still in ny face. Liam had taken off his jacket that evening, but he was still in the rest of his outfit. In the morning, Effie woke me up with a terrible shriek. "AAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHH!" I startled awake, sitting up so quickly it made my head spin. "What's going on? What's happening?" Liam woke up slowly after hearing my yells."What's wron-AHH! Why is Effie in here!" Just as my lips formed an answer, Effie butted in. "You two! Together! Like, for real! And you look awful! Liam, get out of here before your prep team gets here. Rue, I'll deal with you later. I'm very disappointed in you both." Liam mouthed what Effie had just said to me behind her back, making a Capitol-ish face. I almost made a half smile, but stopped myself. I had just remembered why Effie had woken us.