"It's a new dawn,
It's a new day,
It's a new life for me,
And I'm feelin' good"
-"Feelin' Good" by Nina Simone
Nothing had confused Tessa more in her life than what happened on July 25, HG90.
The last thing she clearly remembered was launching up into the Arena. She couldn't even place anything from the Bloodbath. Just black, and then a bright white light.
Then she woke up in a bed, dressed in just a paper gown. She heard the beep of a monitor, which steadily increased. She was acutely aware of a bunch of people freaking out before she fell asleep.
The next time she woke up, she was much less tired, and was actually able to sit up and take in her surroundings. She realized that she was in the training center, of all places! She suddenly felt a wave of nerves that she'd never felt before. Were the Games just a dream? Would she have to go through that all again?
Suddenly, she heard a voice. "74F9 is awake, and her heart rate has spiked." Tessa looked around to find a woman approaching her, who explained that she had been brought back to life after being killed in the 74th Hunger Games, and that it was now 16 years later.
Tessa had never been more grateful for anything in her life.
The next month was full of tests on Tessa. She was staying in the Training Center, which brought back some bad memories, even though it had been completely remodeled. This time, however, she was staying on the fourth floor, and though the bottom floor had been transformed into a lounge space and game room, she longed for someone to be with. Or, really, somewhere else to go.
It took the woman, President Paylor, a long time to figure out what to do with Tessa, partly because they had to make sure her body was stable, but partly because she really hadn't thought the project through. At the beginning of September, it was finally decided that the revived tributes should go to the homes of the living Victors. Each of the bottom 5 floors was designated for a different destination, and though Tessa didn't know her destination yet, she knew that anyone else who would go there would stay on that floor.
Tessa's wish for a friend was fulfilled on September 5, when the male tribute from District 4 from her Games, Sebastian Aronig, woke up. Tessa was two years older than Sebastian, who was only 12, and though their relationship remained platonic, he fulfilled Tessa's request for companionship. And so two weeks passed by blissfully for both involved.
Date: September 19, HG90
Location: Training Center, the Captiol
Tessa woke up, as usual, to the sound of her alarm. She was more than thrilled, however, to see that the clock read 8:00 AM, as opposed to 7:00 AM. For the past few months, she had been very strictly monitored in terms of her sleep, because the Captiol was concerned that sleeping for too long would affect her body's ability to wake up again. Thankfully, her body was now deemed ready to handle it. Even better, she still had another hour and a half before her tutoring for the day began! She elected to take the time to relax in her room before going downstairs. After getting dressed, she braided her strawberry blonde hair down the back. Normally, she would use a little bit of mascara to emphasize her hazel eyes, but she decided against it for that day. She then ordered an omelet from the kitchens for breakfast, and hung around in her room until 9:30.
When she came downstairs to the lounge, she was greeted by President Paylor. "Good morning, Madam President," she said.
"Good morning, Tessa. Would you come with me to my office for a second?"
"Of course." Tessa followed President Paylor down a few corridors and through a tunnel before arriving at the office. Paylor swiped a card to grant the pair access, and then motioned for Tessa to take a seat in one of the comfortable chairs in front of the desk. Paylor then took a seat behind the desk.
"Well, I have some news for you. After careful consideration, we have determined that you are ready to leave the Capitol and return to the districts."
"But I like it here!" protested Tessa. "I don't want to go back home anyway!"
"Well, you won't be going back to District 9, as we know what your situation was there. Instead, you'll be going to District 12, to live with Katniss and Peeta Everdeen-Mellark."
Katniss and Peeta, thought Tessa. Do I really get to live with the Star-Crossed Lovers? Can I really live there, instead of in District 9?
"Tonight," Paylor continued, "we will be announcing to the country the success of the project that has revived you. Tomorrow, you will leave the Capitol and go to District 12, where you can live for as long as you'd like. The one question that still must be answered is, would you like to appear or for your name to be mentioned on the broadcast tonight?"
"I'd rather not be on screen myself, so I can get ready to leave, but I wouldn't object to having a picture of me on screen. But not my Games picture."
"In that case, I'm now going to send you back to your floor, so that we can get a nice picture of you. I will have some other things to give you tomorrow. You may watch the broadcast if you wish, but you don't have to, because you already know almost everything that will be said on the broadcast. I will be back tomorrow to give you final instructions for departure. You can go back to your floor now."
Tessa went back to the elevator and headed up to her floor. She was greeted by a woman holding a garment bag and a makeup bag. Tessa brought the garment bag into her room and found a very pretty, knee-length lavender dress that looked like a slightly older version of a flower girl dress she had found in a catalog the week before. "Doesn't this make me look a bit young?" she asked the woman.
"We're going for the innocence look," she replied. "Little girls are a symbol of innocence, and we want to make you look innocence. You're already relatively short." Tessa couldn't argue with that. Four feet nine inches wasn't exactly tall.
After she got dressed, Tessa put on a pair of white kitten heels and then sat down to get her hair and makeup done. The woman straightened Tessa's hair and put in a clear headband with a lavender flower on it. Next came simple, natural makeup, and then Tessa was whisked up to the 12th floor, where they found a makeshift photo studio set up.
"Hello, Tessa! My name is Daniel, and I'll be your photographer today. We're going to do a few quick shots, and then you'll be free to go downstairs and pack."
Tessa really enjoyed the photo session. They had her do a few different poses, and then caught her from different angles. After the photo session was done, Tessa went back down to her room to settle down and pack. She wasn't quite sure what the next 48 hours would bring, but she did know that she was hours away from the beginning of a new chapter in her life. And she had a good feeling about it.