Sorry for making you wait but it took a while to invent all the parade costumes. Read and review.
Disclaimer: it's too bad that I never had any great ideas like Suzanne Collins.
We climb onto our carriage with two black horses to pull it. Since we're from District 7, we go on about halfway, which gives me time to have a quick look around at what the others Districts are wearing.
I immediately notice District 1, which is way up at the front of the chariots. Both of the tributes are wearing crowns and have bright red cloaks with white fur. Both of them are also holding a sceptres decorated in gems and jewels. Underneath it all they're wearing skin-tight gold clothes. All in all, they look extremely rich, like royalty, which matches their district's specialty: luxury. Well, their stylist have certainly achieved something, I think to myself.
Next I notice 2, masonry. The tributes have gold headsets and are covered in armour plates. An additional hammer is placed in the male tributes hands. The girl, probably aged 16, has a knife and I bet she knows how to use it. Hopefully the weapons are just as real as my axe. Absolutely fake.
My eyes skim over the District 3 tributes and all I see is a clump of metal probably meant to represent clockwork. Not very interesting I would say and I won't remember them by the time this is over.
District 4 is a little inappropriate, but so is my costume so I won't judge. The female tribute, Karla - another possible ally, is wearing a tight blue bikini top with no straps and a lot of pearls. I mean like a lot. She's also wearing a leaf skirt, though it is extremely short. The boy is wearing matching blue board shorts (bare chest, but no abs, which is sad), with a trident in his left hand and an old looking fishing hat on his head. He too is covered in pearls but less than Karla.
District 5 I can't remember; only that it had something to do with lightning. Come to think of it, I don't even know what District 5's industry is but I do remember wanting a tribute for an alliance there.
6 I don't remember either.
And then before I know it it's us. Riding out in front of the Capitol crowds but just before we leave one of my prep team hauls a plastic tree onto the carriage and whispers "hit it". Then we're off. Lights blinding us, crowds shouting our names, horse shoes clanking on the street. Everything is happening too fast.
I raise my axe and the audience gasp, probably thinking I'm about to throw it at them – idiots. I hit the tree with all my force.
Nothing happens. The crowd starts jeering and mocking us. I hit the tree again and again nothing happens.
I hit it one last time and it suddenly bursts into sparkles. Tons of little green sparkles fly out in all directions. Now the audience are amazed and cheering.
I guess my stylists really wanted to make an impression this year. Have District 7 remembered. Or they just want to get bumped up to a better District. Either way it will help me get sponsors.
I look around to see the same thing happening on his side. He also got a tree. He also hit it. It also burst into sparkles. Now I don't feel as special.
My District partner will get sponsors too, and he's not even on my side. He's on the enemies' side. I guess that's what Career tributes are; the main enemy. And since Louis decided to join them, he'll be my enemy too. I hate him for that. I thought I could count on my district partner as an ally and now I can't unless I join the careers, which I'm not planning no doing.
Before I know it we arrive at the city circle where the rest of the chariots pull up behind us. The two Districts that really stand out, coming after us, are District 10 and 11.
10 are wearing skin-tight white clothes with black cow prints, but what I really found interesting was that they both have an animal skull on their head. Plus they each have a bone in their hand.
District 11 is probably the most colourful of all the costumes I have seen today. The female tribute, also a possible ally, is dressed in a colourful dress patterned with leaves and flowers, her blonde hair a little shorter than it was during the Reapings. The boy is wearing similar shorts, but his shaggy hair is still the same length. Both have a pile of fruits on their heads. The boy seems to be trying to eat the fruit but I bet it's plastic. I'm not so sure if I want him as an ally anymore, but I'll have to wait for training to make my final decision. Inside though I'm laughing.
I think I recall 9 being dressed in straw and 8 being extremely colourful but nothing more.
I hear someone clear his voice over the microphone; I immediately look up only to see our President. He's slightly overweight yet he is young.
Then he begins his annual speech about the Games, rebellions and the Dark Days. I just zone out as I have heard it before and know it almost word for word.
In my head I debate about who will get the most sponsors and come to the conclusion that it will probably be one of the richer Districts, Districts closer to the Capitol like 1, 2, not 3 and maybe 4. I hope 4 gets many sponsors as one of them may be in my alliance, unless she joins Louis and the rest of the Careers. That would really disappoint me, but I better not get my hopes up.
I'm brought back to reality when the horses jerk forward and the sound of their hooves echoes on the pavement. The speech is over and we head of to our rooms.
Our escort explains to us that we are on the 7th floor since we're form District 7 and that dinner will be served in 2 hours. She also clarifies when training starts the next morning and just goes on and on until we reach our dorms, which are even bigger than the train cabins. No surprise.
I take a quick shower, washing all the makeup of this evening off, find a comfortable outfit and flop onto the bed. I stay there the whole evening, missing dinner as a result, just thinking of strategies to use in the training centre. I've never seen it before, and no one from 7 has ever come out alive to tell us, so I don't really know what to do tomorrow. I know that there are different stations that include both survival skills and weapon practise.
In the end I decide that I will show of some of my skills with the weapons, hopefully giving me a better chance for an alliance, but also focus on the survival skills. I know most of the medical herbs and edible things in the forest but there might be something new to learn that I haven't already mastered.
Just before going to sleep I turn on the flat screen TV installed in my room only to see the recaps of the chariots ride. Now I see how the tree-that-burst-into-sparkles really looked – amazing. It's almost as noticeable as 11 with their colourful costumes. Hopefully it will get me some more sponsors.
Hope you liked it! Please review, alert and favourite if you want a speedy chapter update. I'm already writing the next chapter so criticism will help that update. Thanks to all who have already reviewed!
