Previously in Gleam In His Eye: Cato and his friend Clove are both allowed to volunteer for the 74th Hunger Games. Cato is confident in having the skills to successfully follow in his father's footsteps. Three other tributes catch his attention: two he'll need to kill, and one he's attracted to.

By Alan Gilfoy in the world of Suzanne Collins. Chapters 6 and 7 of Gale's Hunger Games from Cato's perspective. He was born to win and now has his chance.

This chapter is mostly non-romance pre-Games scenes, but also includes a lot of Cato/Glimmer fluff.

Review Commentary

Ellenka:

Love that the chapters have the same title in both stories. And the crazy careers do know their game :D

Me:

I did like using the same title here (also did for Chapter 1 and will do for Chapter 6)

Clove's joke at the end is a reference to her history with Cato, but also insight into Katniss' history with Gale. Note that Marvel doesn't figure this out.

Chapter

"So, who you got at home for you, Glim?" I said.

"My folks are alright, although Dad's a little old fashioned. Lustre, though…she wants to be just like her big sister."

"I'm an only child – it's kinda hard to have younger siblings when your dad died before you were born."

"Are those tears in big bad Cato's eyes?"

"Glim, you have a special touch, you really do, but no one else hears about this."

"No," she pleaded. "A tough guy with a brain and a bit of a sensitive side? A lot of people like that. I sure do." After she was done kissing me yet again she said, "Even before you came and swept me away, I didn't have another boyfriend." You do know how to make me feel good. "Glimmer can afford to be choosy," she said in the third person.

"You sure can."

"Why thank you. A lot of guys don't get the message."

"Like your district partner."

"Ah sheesh, he's a cool guy, but I definitely have never seen him in that way."

"It's kinda like that with me and Clove, but at least she's smart enough to know it."

"She's one of the ones I'm most worried about. She's so good now, imagine how good she'd be in a few years."

"Marvel and I are only 17; we didn't want to take my chances with the Third Quarter Quell." Well, that explains that. "But she could have waited for the 76th or 77th too." Glimmer stating the obvious is okay because that means I get to listen to and look at her. "Well, I'm also worried about Twelve. They're both looking better and better in training. And this public lovebirds angle is brilliant. Four can play that game." What? "I thought Cato wasn't scared of anything."

"I'm not."

"Well, you seem to be afraid of emotions besides violent rage." She already saw through my front to this shell of a man.

"Not any more, not with you - maybe."

"No maybe about it – you know it. You admitted the truth to me last night. Just admit the truth to Caesar tomorrow night."

"I don't think it's that easy."

"Think about it. Our districts are usually unstoppable. This way, we'll be even more so."

"I will, Glimmer Rose Shinesmith, I will!," I ended up saying with my usual swagger. Having said it so forcefully made clear to me she had gotten me to mean it, not just say it.

She left. I needed to think over what I had actually just said with such enthusiasm. I needed a shower after working out all day. Why did the Capitol have to make even that simple stuff fancy? The next morning, I noticed I was out of tribute uniform sets. I found my cleanest dirty shirt. Things Glimmer wouldn't do. I stumbled out of the apartment.

We saw Katniss and whatshername from eleven race through the ropes course. Twelve won that easily and her district partner was right there to catch her. Smooth move, lover man. Katniss got into position to catch Rue. I'm not sure what she sees in the weakest of the competition, but the little girl did a nice job landing right on the bigger girl's shoulders. A lot of their alliance enjoyed the show, even Thresh, and he had been silent the whole time.

We hit the gauntlet at the end. Careers usually did, including me and Glimmer this year. Climb the steps, deal with the clubs. Easy. She dodged most of the blows. I shrugged them off, and she smiled at me. Gale went up last, and did quite well with it. I wanted to wipe that smirk right off his face…

Atala's whistle blew. "And that's it! Private sessions begin after lunch."

Each of us had fifteen minutes alone to show off to the Gamemakers like we had been doing in public all week. Glimmer got to go first and I got to go fourth. Glimmer walked out quite happy with herself, not that Marvel and Clove could complain either. We had the training center to ourselves to demonstrate whatever we wanted to. I threw some spears once I got done hacking apart dummies with swords. Everything went as I knew it would. We just had to wait until before the interviews tomorrow evening to know exactly how well I did.

I had to kill time tomorrow, supposedly getting prepared for the interview. I'm already ready to go. "You looking tough is not going to be difficult." Brutus had a point, but that's not the only thing I was thinking any more. "What happened with my father and what's happening with Glimmer – the audience will love it."

"That's not your angle, Adams. You're someone they don't want to mess with, not someone who needs to work up a sob story."

"The odds will be even more in my favor."

"Well, you've been having a good time this week, but I still think that girl could be the end of you."

They brought me yet another suit. Fine.

We finally got to hear out training scores right before leaving for interviews. Of course we'd be close to the high of twelve. A nine for Glim, but a ten for me – awesome. Both of us had district partners get the same. District Four didn't do that well for Careers. Hah, my friend from District Six only got a five. It's on, punk. The guys from Districts Eight and Eleven also pulled nines. How the heck did Katniss get an eleven? I expected Gale to do fairly well, but not a ten.

The interviews were yet another thing in district number order with females first, and that's how we lined up outside of Caesar's studio. We were able to look through the doorway to watch it live, and Glimmer gave us plenty to watch. The Capitol men were cheering for her like expected.

She made clear to Caesar and our audience that she was both attractive and deadly. When she said "I have a boyfriend", Marvel's head hung low as I smirked at him. Claudius called time.

Marvel was reasonably friendly with Caesar. One of the things he joked about was the identity of Glimmer's significant other. "I'm afraid it's not me, but not for lack of trying." I guess he was using his failure to gain sympathy.

Clove made it clear that she was dangerous, letting everybody know she was the pint-size peril I knew her as. However, at times she was sweet instead of sharply sarcastic.

I had to admit I looked pretty sharp in this 'yet another suit'. My hair looked almost too nice. The Capitol women cheered for me like the men did for Glimmer. I decided to fuel the fire by giving them a flex. Caesar started by asking me, "Why were you so eager to volunteer?"

"I'm confident I can win this. I'm ready, willing and able to kill my way there. My father thought the same."

Caesar explained what us in the Career camp already knew. "But Julius Adams didn't make it out of the 55th Games."

"Aye. His girlfriend (my mother) was already pregnant." Like when talking to Glimmer, the heavy emotions cut my swagger a bit. "An Adams will take the crown this time."

There was a gleam in my eye as I had one more thing to say. "That Glimmer, she's something else, isn't she? We fell for each other real quick." The audience went crazy. Looks, strength and something more and they loved it. Take that, tough-guy Brutus.

Many of the other tributes had interviews as unimpressive as their training scores. The girl from District Five seemed pretty smart, but she had probably scored only a five for a reason. The idiot from Six was trying took tough, and I knew it wasn't working.

Rue said, "If they can't catch me, they can't kill me. So don't count me out." Caesar agreed. Challenge accepted. After all, I'm here because I relish a challenge. Her district partner continued being difficult even under the studio lights, barely saying anything to Caesar. A silent-but-deadly angle I suppose. Let's make that silent and dead. Caesar was friendly and professional even when putting up with that nonsense.

Katniss was not ready, and Caesar was trying to be nice. "So, what's your favorite part of the Capitol so far?"

"The lamb stew?"

"I can't get enough of that stuff either, and I'm afraid it shows." He patted his gut; the audience liked how he could poke fun at himself.

"But really, Cinna. He's the nicest person I've met here, and aren't the outfits amazing?"

"Yes, that tribute parade will not soon be forgotten." I remembered it all right, getting a good look at Glimmer, but you two had to go and show us up…

She stood up and began to twirl around. The bottom of the dress looked like it was on fire like the tribute parade costumes, and the audience ate up that shtick again.

"Pretty girl like you must have a special guy."

"We've been inseparable for years, but only recently fell in love." Glimmer hadn't wasted any time. What had Katniss been doing?

"Well, go home to him; a victor is quite a catch." Right on, Flickerman, but…

"That won't help."

"Why not?"

"He's here with me." We had seen it coming, but the audience didn't, and they fell silent. Did it seem like they were copying us, or did it seem like they had one-upped us?

Gale nearly missed his cue from the unmistakable deep booming voice of Games announcer Claudius Templesmith. "And now for the last of our tributes, the District Twelve male, Gale Hawthorne."

He swaggered through the stage lights to go sit next to Caesar. As with me, the females in the audience cheered the loudest, and it seems like Gale was used to the attention too.

He shook Caesar's hand as Caesar said, "Supposedly one girl already has your heart."

"It's true. She's the only one for me; all the lovers that came before don't compare to her. A certain couple has known each other for four and half days; we've known each other for four and half years." Real subtle there, Hawthorne. Real subtle.

"So you volunteered to save your girlfriend?" That's sweet but stupid, and did the Capitolites see the same reaping I did?

"No, my brother. That damsel can handle her own distress…" Frankly, you on her side is going to make killing her a lot more difficult. "…but Rory needs my help."

"That's basically what she said about…"

He started talking rapid-fire after ending Caesar's sentence: "Prim. We're exceptions to the saying, 'family loyalty only goes so far on reaping day'. We already do all we can for them. We basically had to after our fathers died in the mines. This includes taking the tesserae." The audience was quiet. It's easy – more food and you get a better chance of getting to go to the Games. "Take additional food rations, get additional reaping entries. Here, the Avoxes serve us more than we know what to do with." Yeah, the food is really good here. "District Twelve's gonna have a victor. I guarantee it. Someone's going to live through this. When it's over, they and our folks will never be hungry again. I'm proud to bear Rory's amateur artwork as my token." Gale displayed the family portrait - the little Hawthorne couldn't draw very well though. Clove could actually make some nice leatherwork crafts with her knives when she wasn't throwing them, and she was wearing one of her own bracelets tonight.

"Now, Katniss' three minutes are already up, but let's hear it for the two most loyal older siblings in the country." Much of the crowd was on their feet, and I think I saw Glimmer join them – maybe she felt the same way about Lustre.

Enobaria showed me the latest printout from the Capitol bookmakers. "Well, Adams, the odds are on your favor." It's true, I was the favorite at 3-1. "But your girlfriend, not so much," she sneered as she pointed out Glim's 7-1. "The clowns from Twelve are each at 4-1. How did that happen?"

Brutus offered an answer. "Outdid you on that lovebird act." It's no act for any of us.

Clove wanted to change the subject. "Her getting an eleven and her man getting a ten is probably what did it."

Brutus agreed with my district partner. "Yeah, that didn't hurt, Hawkins."

I went to Glimmer's apartment again. She greeted me with a few simple words. "What you said about me was beautiful."

"You really opened my heart. You deserved it. Lately, pleasing this particular woman has made me feel like an even better man." I knew she was a fan of lines like that.

"Even more than the show of force downstairs?"

"Yep."

I felt like it was time to go back to my apartment, so I said, "If nothing else, this has been one heck of a week. Well, goodnight and shine on."

"I know it's been more than that. Stay right here." I drew her close for a few minutes before I left. Glimmer kept on providing a sort of warmth to me beyond mere body heat.

Brutus woke me up. "I things went well again with Glimmer last evening. Good for you."

We were due for a physical before heading out to the arena. I passed with flying colors; Glimmer seemed more confused about her results.

A/N

"Well, you seem to be afraid of emotions besides violent rage?" is inspired by the last chapter of Behind Enemy Lines, a solid Cato/OC fic by PeppermintAmortentia.

Clove using knives as craft tools comes from Beauty From The Ashes, an amazing Glimmer/Cato fic by Don't Call Me Sparkles.