6
When we enter the Training Center I see Penelope and Georgette running up to our chariot. Georgette is smiling, and Penelope is just sort of half-smiling in a serious sort of way. I guess it's hard to show happiness when someone's been through so much.
I hop off the chariot and immediately I'm in Georgette's arms. I hug her back and listen to her praises and then she moves on to one of the others.
I look at Penelope expectantly. She just stares back giving me a what-are-you-looking-at? Look. I look away and when Georgette finally stops hugging everyone Penelope steps forward and looks at each of us. "That was great, if you want to lose all your sponsors," she says bluntly.
We all gape at her for a long moment and then she continues "I've know District Twelve isn't the highlight of the parade, but for the chariot to be completely ignored…It just blows my mind!"
"What's with the solemn face through out the entire ride Elder? And May Lilly you were waving, but when the cameras zoomed up on you, your face was as somber as a rainy day." She turns to Haymitch "You just need to relax; you look looked like a bed of nails up there."
"And you," she says looking at me "You were doing the best. Until about halfway through the parade, then you just sort of shut off and you turned into a robot!" she gives me a look that could kill.
"Penelope," Georgette says "Let's take it easy shall we?"
Penelope takes a deep breath and then in a quiet voice says, "Well I hope you all do better in your interviews, because right now District Twelve will have four less citizens. Now get up to your rooms," Penelope walks away, massaging the bridge of her nose.
I am numb. The feeling doesn't just hit me, it just becomes more pronounced. Like I've always been numb, I just never felt it before. Penelope has spoken my fears, I'm not going home. I am not good enough at this kind of thing. I can only think on instinct, not acting. I shake the thought out of my mind. The gifts from sponsors don't decide whether you live or die. But they sure help. I think.
Georgette leads us to an elevator that has glass walls so I can see the ground floor slowly become smaller as we rise up to the top floor. As we rise I see Penelope's body slowly fade as we reach the top. The door opens and before us is as huge room that has a sitting area in the center and a door leading to a hall. I walk through the main room looking at all the Capitol luxury. I've grown less amazed at how awe striking the architecture of the Capitol is, and spend more time comparing District Twelve to it. For instance, my father's candy shop was about half the size of this room, and it was considered a big home. I walk down the hall and see that there are four doors. At first I think that there's one for each tribute, but then I remember that Georgette and Penelope need a room as well, and I don't think either of them would want to bunk.
I feel a tap on my shoulder and whip around raising my hands in a protecting stance. When my vision refocuses I see that I stand face to face with an Avox. My skin starts crawling at the sight of her. I'm not disgusted at her, on the contrary, I feel terrible for her. Avoxes are people who had their tongues cut out and are forced to serve the people of the Capitol ecause of some crime they commited. They live in fear, since if you even talk to them, unless you're giving them an order, the Capitol will punish them. I have never even thought of doing something illegal, but even if I did the fear of becoming an Avox would be enough to persuade me against the act.
The Avox points forward and I start to walk towards the end of the hall. When we reach the last door, the Avox opens the door and I enter a giant room with two beds separated by a half wall. The Avox walks over to a small table and grabs a tiny remote off it. She returns to me and shows me that if I press a certain button, the wall will close completely. I nod to her and she retreats to the end of the room.
I walk toward the beds. Each is the same width and height, but I have always liked corners, so I walk to the other side of the wall and place my mockingjay pin on the pillow as a dissuasion to May Lilly who I expect will be sharing my bedroom. I walk to the window and look out onto the bustling street below.
The Capitol people rush around in every direction. Some walking into stores, others walk out of restaurants after a sumptuous dinner. I flash catches my eyes. My gaze turns to two young people running down the street. They stop and I see that the girl is laughing at something that the boy has said. Then he checks over his shoulder and pulls the girl down one of the side streets. This brings back a memory of Miller.
It was a brisk autumn morning sometime earlier this year. The fallen leaves rustled under my feet as I headed to school. I always loved autumn, the time of year when all the leaves changed to brilliant colors of yellow, orange and red. I enjoyed wearing denim jackets, and this time of year was a perfect excuse for one, not too cold for a fluffy down coat, but not too hot for just a shirt.
I was holding my books close to my side when I felt a hand rap around my arm and pull me around a corner. Then I saw Miller staring into my eyes. Something inside me fluttered, like a bunch of butterflies started to fly up and down my stomach, yet it also felt like a rock dropped in my gut. It's how I always felt when his blue eyes gazed into mine. I smiled at him and said, "What are you doing?"
He smirked back at me and said, "I wanted to show you something. Come on."
He started to pull me down the road, but I resisted saying, "Can it wait? We're going to miss school." I didn't resist much. When he didn't answer I gripped his hand back and started to walk with him. I felt his warmth pulsing into my hand and thought of how nice it would be if I never let go. I then heard a few kids walk by and regained my senses. "No, Miller really, we need to go," I said pulling him back towards the school yard.
He stopped and looked at me a glint of mischief in his eyes. I smiled at him and he replied, "So we'll be late. It's not the first time." He looked over my shoulder at the road then back at me. "Come on, it's important," he said with a tug on my hand.
He gave me a pleading look and I melted. We walked for a few minutes and then when we reached the main street he stopped and told me to stay low and follow him. I agreed since if someone saw us this adventure would end abruptly. We snuck around a few boxes and then made a break for the clearing about five yards away.
When we reached "safety," as Miller called it, we rejoined hands and walked to a small house that had been for sale for years, and had been in disrepair for longer than that. I looked at it, and then at Miller. I noticed that his face was filled with anxious excitement as he stared at the broken building.
"OK, What?" I asked him raising one eyebrow.
"Can't you see it? There's the master bedroom," he says pointing to the window on the left side of the house. He continued, "And there's the room for the kids. Well it's hard to describe from the outside, come on." He started to pull me up the steps and through the broken door.
Inside there was an old stove and a set of cabinets, but that was about it. When you walked through the door, you were in what looked like the kitchen and then there was a long hallway to the left that led to the bedrooms, and a small living room to the right. A rather big house for District Twelve, but it needed a lot of work.
"I'm planning on building a small porch on the front where you can see the mountains in the distance. The plumbing isn't working, but I have a friend that will fix it cheap. And I'll be out of school right after this reaping so I can start working for my Dad full time at the pastry shop." Miller said.
"What does this have to do with me?" I said my stomach twisting in delightful knots.
Miller looked at me for a long moment, I could see the love he held for me in his eyes, he then shook his head as if to get out of a trance, and said, "It's going be ours."
My heart began to race in my chest, and my body felt as light as the wind. I started to ask him a question, but all that comes out is a small squeak. I closed my eyes and tried to regain my composure. Then I repeated, "What?"
Miller said, "It may take me a few years, but my dad said he'd help me buy this place for the future." He said it fast and his words jumbled over each other, but I began to smile like a crazy person.
"No, what do you mean by ours?" I said hopeful that it wasn't just a slip of the tongue.
Miller looked at me for a few minutes and then said "When we get married, and start a family of our own. I'll have a job, I can support us. I know it'll be a few years before it happens, but I know you'll be a great mother and…you do want to get married right?" he says. Then it was his turn to look hopeful.
I was exploding, my body warmed and my face reddened. I felt like I could blow away with the wind. I stared at Miller for a minute and then replied, "Do I? Miller I've always wanted to marry you." Miller's face lit up and he started to walk fast toward me. "But, my dad won't let me date until I'm eighteen," I said.
"We've basically been dating since you were fourteen and I was sixteen anyway Maysilee, we always sit together at parties, we walk home together, all our spare time we spend with each other," he said.
When he reached me the wind kicked up and the leaves started to fly through the air. Miller leaned down to me and just before our lips made contact I whispered, "But,"
Miller pulled back "but what?" he asked his eyes starting to lose their light. I smiled at his face. He looked so scared that I would have said no.
I looked at him and said "You haven't even proposed to me yet."
Relief flooded Miller's face and he walked closer to me again. His face was inches away from mine when he replied "Do I have to?"
I close my eyes and listen to his breathing; I smell his scent, like soap and fresh air. I already know the answer. "No, you don't. But it'd be nice," I said leaning back just a hair so our eyes met again.
"Alright, Maysilee Donner, I love you and I want you to be my wife. Will you do me the honor of marrying me?" Miller asked.
"Yes," I say and my body leaned toward him instinctively. My lips were inches away from his, and I closed my eyes, my lips searched for his. I felt his finger instead. When I open my eyes I see he's smiling.
He leans in to my ear and whispered, "Not yet, I want to wait for our wedding day." He turned his head and kissed me on the cheek. A warm tingling feeling remained where his lips were, and we embraced. Just then the school bell went off in the distance and we headed to school, I walked on clouds the entire way.
The memory surges through me and I lean back with my eyes closed. At this moment I remember that I may never be able to kiss Miller. Why didn't I kiss him before I left? I feel like kicking myself.
I turn around and notice that the Avox still stands at the door. "That's all," I say and the Avox quickly leaves the room. I return to gazing out the window. My heart is still racing from the memory of Miller's marriage proposal.
Miller. Strong, stead-fast, light-hearted Miller Mellark. I can see his face looking back at me through the window. His black hair sets off his blue eyes beautifully. He has a little dimple on his left cheek that makes me melt every time I see it. This would have been his last reaping, and I only had two more. Two more reaping's, I was so close to being free of the Capitols looming presence of fear, and I'm picked.
Just then Georgette comes in and tells me dinners ready. When I finish I go straight to bed. I sleep all the way through the night and I have no dreams.
I awake early the next morning and seize the time to take a shower. When I step in I notice that there I a little control panel that has an array of buttons on it for the shower. I stare at them for a few minutes, then I press the one that has a red splotch on it and out comes boiling hot water that feels like it gives me third degree burns on my head and shoulders.
I jump back and quickly press the button that has a blue splotch on it. The water then turns completely ice cold and I stifle a shriek as it hits me. Looking over the panel again I find a button that shows both a red and blue splotch and press that. Immediately the water changes to a bearable heat that I relax in and start to gaze at the panel for the soap.
When I finish my shower I head to the dining room. My feet barely make a sound on the carpeted hallway and when I walk into the room, and I see that still no one is up. The Avoxes have already set the table with muffins and fruits. There are two pots of hot cereal in the center. Each place is set with a plate and bowl, two forks and a spoon. I try to decide whether or not to sit at the table, or to walk to the living room in and wait for more people.
I grab a cup of coffee and add some cream and sugar to it. I then retreat to the living room and sit in the big leather sofa that wraps around half the room. My body warms when the coffee slides down my throat.
I hear a footstep behind me and turn to see Penelope standing in the hallway looking at me. Although she looks wide awake I see that she has dark circles under her eyes. This brings me to wondering if her Games still haunt her. I would expect that it never leaves you. Maybe the memory becomes stronger every year at this time, when she has to train other tributes from her district, and watch them die.
Penelope walks over to the coffee and gets a cup. Most women I know use cream and sugar, but Penelope drinks it straight. I watch open mouthed as she gulps down the entire mug and fills herself another.
She then walks over to the living room and sits down across from me. Every time I'm in a room with her I feel like I'm a specimen she's studying. I sit uncomfortably as she looks at me. "You can't count on your strength to help you," she says bluntly.
"Excuse me?" I say.
"You are skinny and kind of frail, so brute force isn't going to help you. Speed and agility are going to be your best capabilities for surviving. So when you're in the training section focus on stretches and speed drills. I happen to know there's a pretty good obstacle course, go through that over and over until you can do it without a second thought. Do you have any good fighting skills?" Penelope asks taking a sip of coffee.
"Ugh," I think for a few minutes. I don't have enough muscle for holding a huge sword, or axe. Hand to hand combat isn't something I could do. Like Penelope says I am too small for that type of fighting. "I have a pretty good aim," I say.
It's true, I've always been able to throw stuff and hit a target with deadly precision. Penelope seems to ponder this for a few minutes and says, "OK, don't practice that much. Save shooting a bow, and throwing knives for your Individual Sessions with the Gamemakers. Show me how good you are," she says. Just as I'm about to ask how, she pulls out a small pocket knife and throws it to me. "Hit that orange on the table," she says pointing to the orange that protrudes from the fruit bowl.
I stand up and open the pocket knife. The handle is heavy, and I know that I'll have to take that into account for the proper spin of the knife. I hold it by the blade. At this distance it will need about two full turns to hit the orange right.
I take position. When I breathe in I pull the knife back. I breathe out and throw it. It sails through the air turning once, twice. There's a small thwack sound when the blade sinks into the orange and I breathe a sigh of relief.
Penelope nods her head a few times. She wears an approving look and then says, "Good, now save knife and axe throwing for the individual session. You can do all other target exercises. Also don't forget the survival skills. Trapping and hunting, and knowing what types of plants are eatable. Remember exposure is another tribute all on its own," she says giving me a do-you-understand look.
"All right, I will," I say nodding even though her eyes are not on me anymore, but on whoever is entering the dining room.
I turn and see that May Lilly has walked out and now looks at us groggily. I smile at her and she turns to the table grabbing one of the glasses of orange juice that sit next to the coffee pot. She then walks over to one of the chairs at the table and sits down.
I see Penelope's face contort in concentration as she looks at May Lilly. I realize that she's sizing her up, seeing what might be good for her to practice. After a minute of this Penelope says, "May Lilly, today when you're in training, I want you pay attention to all the different plants, and how to disguise yourself, OK?"
May Lilly turns and looks at Penelope for a second. She then nods and says, "OK." She turns back around and reaches for a muffin in the center of the big table. Her arms are a little too small, and she can't seem to reach it. Out of nowhere pops an Avox and he hands her the muffin.
Georgette walks out next, her hair is still the same color, but she's styled it so that forms a giant circular shape on her head. She covers her mouth as she yawns and takes a seat at the table. She then waits for the Avoxes to pour her a cup of tea, and put the food on her plate. I stand up and walk to the table as I hear to sets of footsteps coming down the hall.
Haymitch and Elder come out and whereas Haymitch says good morning, Elder merely grunts. Breakfast goes fast, and then I see Penelope pull both Haymitch and Elder aside in turn. Most likely she's telling them what specifics she wants them to work on. After this, Georgette rushes us to the elevator and we head down the Training floor
The Training room is massive, and I am in awe as I eye the place I notice the overabundance of weapons. They're everywhere. There are certain ones they are placed around targets and dummies. Then there are some just scattered around the place on little movable racks.
There's one whole half of one of the walls dedicated entirely to targets, the other half is dummies. On the other side are little roped of sections that have a trainer standing next to them and demonstrate different elements of physical, or survival preparation. Right next to the elevator is the obstacle course that Penelope said I needed to undergo.
Georgette said that today would be the only day that she would accompany us down to sign in. She stays long enough to watch the trainers pin the number twelve on our backs, and then she return to our suite.
We are ushered into a small circle with the rest if the tributes and a trainer comes up and starts to talk about the rules of The Training room. I tune her out after she says, "No fighting each other." I gaze around the room. I am dumbfounded by just the sheer mass of kids standing around me.
I look over all the tributes. Most look average. The boys tall and some are muscular while others are just skinny. The girls are all about the same size, except for the younger ones like May Lilly. Only a few stand out in my mind. There's the one of the girls from One, who has a look of hunger in her eyes for blood. Both boys from Four are tall and muscular, they stand next to each other and I notice that they look like twins. Others stand out as well, but most of them are Careers.
After the trainer finishes talking we all scatter into different directions. The Careers stay in a pack, already forming a strong alliance. I smile as I think of something my father said. "Careers, friends till the end. That is the end of each others use."
I head to a little section that a trainer leads you through stretches. I figure I'll need to loosen up before I start. A full split and several stretches later I am standing at the obstacle course. At first glance it looks like a bunch of poles and different levels of ground, but when the trainer swipe the flag and I run in the course comes to life.
The poles swing at me from all different angles and the platforms start to move back and forth and up in down. I do pretty good through the first section, but when I get to the tiny space that I thought was a break I am hit in the side by a foam sword that a trainer is holding. "You failed. Start from the beginning, or come back later," he says returning his original place.
I get up and walk back to the beginning. The trainer swipes the flag again and I begin. I duck and jump and block the entire poles and then when I reach the trainer with the sword he swings and I act on instinct. He swings on a downward slice, and I spin around his back and do a front kick to his back. This makes him step forward and I remember what Penelope said about my strength. Before the trainer turns around again I race into the second section of the course. I'm met with a flying projectile hitting me in the face.
I fall and lay there for a second, and then I see a padded hammer falling toward my face. I scream and roll to the side. It catches my hair and I'm held there for a second. Then the platform starts to angle and my body slips down the side. Just before my hair gets pulled out of my scalp the hammer lets me go and I slide out of the obstacle course.
I hear the trainer yell over me that I have to start again. I decide against it. I have three more days to get it down pat. Right now I want to get my own sledgehammer and make a mess of the course.
Throughout the day I accomplish shooting an arrow, learn how to make a snare, and how to disguise myself. When the time comes to return to the suite my whole body feels like cooked spaghetti. I eat half of my dinner and then crawl into my room. I'm asleep before my head hits the pillow. I dream of Miller, and training courses, but also in every dream I see the tail end of a mockingjay as it soars out of my vision.
Hey Everyone!
I'm thinking of posting a little sneak preview at the end of each chapter now. Here's the first! Tell me if you think this is a good idea or not. Hope you're enjoying Maysilee's story and may the odds be ever in your favor!
Chapter 7 Preview
. . .I walk up to the center and say, "Maysilee Donner, District Twelve." Some turn their heads and nod and so I begin before I lose them again.
I know I want to involve the obstacle course, but I'm not sure how. I then get an idea and ask a few of the trainers to help me move the dummies. I place them at different places throughout the entire course. I then tell the trainer that's in the middle of the course to put on protective gear. As he does that I grab two belts that have six to eight knives each and strap them across each shoulder. I then take another belt with two throwing axes and tie it around my waist. Complteley prepared I close my eyes and imagine the course and me running through it hitting the dummies. I breathe in…and then out. In…out, I nod to the trainer in the front and he swings the flag. . .