Axel Treefall (17), District Seven Male-POV
Standing in the room all by myself, I angrily threw off the red Reaping shirt. Quickly following it, the nice black slacks, which had belonged to my brother, followed it into the trash heap. It didn't matter to me if I had Forest's clothing with me or not, since I wouldn't be coming out of here alive. And if I did come out of here alive, well, then the world is even worse than I thought. There wasn't anything I wanted to do know but to protect her, to protect Juniper from the awful evils in the arena. Everyone knew exactly what it could do, and almost no one knew better than me. After all, my brother had been killed in it, just like I would eventually. Maybe someone would be kind enough to place my coffin next to Forest's, that way my corpse could be near his. Instantly, Juniper's kind face flashed into my mind, knowing that she'd be the one to do it.
Kicking the drawers open, the slight pain that erupted in my toe was ignored, as I've seen far worse. Since my father died in his drunken state, I'd been the man of the house, so I went to work in the lumber yard. From years of doing so, my size had become brawny and strong, leaving some of the younger children to be scared of me. Thinking back to when I had been called up onto the stage, this little girl cried silently for me, even if she didn't know me. Later, during my allotted hour of time to say goodbye to no one, she had came and revealed that her brother wanted to be like me. That little girl said that she didn't want her brother to be dead, and promptly left the room in tears, not even realizing what she had just said. It didn't matter though; I would be dead, and Juniper would be alive, so this world would be just a little bit better.
"You know, if you stopped throwing a hissy fit you'd be able to keep yourself in better shape," Cypress stated, walking out from the shadows of my room.
Two years ago, Cypress was Reaped for the Hunger Games at the young age of twelve. On the Bloodbath list, people were sure she was going to die, even when she got a score of seven in training. Somehow, Cypress managed to keep to the shadows and evade detection, waiting for her moment to strike when only three Careers were left. Perfectly, I remember how she had snuck into their camp late at night, using her small form and the cover of darkness to her advantage, and poisoned their food supplies. The next morning, Cypress left the arena as the newest Victor of the Hunger Games. More so, Cypress just happened to be the only Mentor for District Seven, since it wasn't a well kept secret of the Head Gamemaker's hatred towards our District. Yet for some strange reason, Cypress had been left alive, probably because the small girl, standing at a height of 4 feet and 10 inches, quickly became a Capitol favorite.
"Whatever, Cypress," I huffed, not exactly liking that my fate was in the hands of a twiggy girl three years younger than me.
Darting around the room slightly as she walked, her brown braids hung down her face perfectly, no doubt done by our Escort. Khihan, a ginger haired man who bonded quickly with our Mentor over two years, absolutely adored doing people's hair. In fact, Khihan had actually told us that he wanted to by a stylist, yet people found that he simply talked all too much to be able to keep the Tributes happy in Remake Center. And so, he took up one of the room in Cypress' house, acting as the parental guardian of the orphaned Victor.
"I spoke with Juniper," Cypress informed me, a taunting edge to her voice, "Do you want to know what she said?"
Everything melted away, putting me in my happy place; the meadow. Juniper and I sat deep inside of it; a dress made of the purest silk and covered in rose petals on her. Her blonde hair fell gracefully down her back, two small braids connecting in the back to make a simple crown. Dazzling blue eyes, they looked like tiny pieces of the bluest sky had fallen down from the earth, held captive by the most beautiful girl I know. To say I liked Juniper would be an understatement, I reflected, and she'd never get to know it. Maybe when she joined Cypress as a Mentor she would, but for now, the fair haired beauty would have to be kept in the dark.
"What did she say?" I almost growled, not wanting to let her know how much I really did want to know.
Tip toeing forward once again, wearing black flats and one of the more pretty Capitol dresses, Cypress whispered into my ear, "She wants to ally with you…"
Skipping out of the room, the first thought I processed was that the Capitol spoiled Cypress just a little too much. As soon as I came back to where I was, my Mentor already vanished, and I stood alone in my room, the crumpled clothes still sitting in the trash heap. Juniper actually wanted to ally with me; this was very, very good. I've learned from watching the Games that if you want to protect someone, it's best to do so when they're not trying to slit open your throat. Thankfully, I shouldn't even have to deal with that problem, and maybe Cypress could actually be of help to us. And if she couldn't, then Khihan might have some ideas on what to do, if I could only get him to shut up long enough to listen.
It was only then that I realized I had only been wearing my boxers the entire time. Face contracting in anger; I punched the wall, expecting my fist to come through cleanly just as it had back at home. Instead, the wall stayed perfectly intact, taunting me even further as a painful throbbing formed in my left hand. Flinging it all around, curses rang loud and clear, causing an Avox to come closer to see what had happened. Growling at the Avox, she must have been skittish, as she quickly ran off without even a bow in my direction.
When the throbbing calmed down to a dull ache, I ransacked the drawers and pulled out some clothing I deemed to be acceptable. Black sweat pants, matching sweatshirt, and a gray tank top were the spoils of my hunt, which I pulled on quickly in case Cypress snuck up on me again. Leaving on my tennis shoes, the table laden with food was completely set up. Only unlike early, it had been filled with deserts, instead of the meat and soups I had devoured previously. Juniper sat there, staring at the screen of the television intently, as some creepy girl with white hair spoke.
"Just don't forget where you are. And should I get restless, well….Welcome to the Games."
Taking it all in, a helpful little piece of script under her image identified her as Datura Gremlin. Everyone knew her to be a freak of nature, accomplishing this feat at only age nineteen. Smirking slightly, I recalled how my Uncle Brutus had been among the small force that killed her parents. While the attempt at starting another rebellion had failed, the uneasiness in the Districts surely would have risen. And who knows? Maybe Juniper will be the next spark to start the flame, just like how Katniss Everdeen had became the Mockingjay. Clenching my fist slightly, I realized that Datura had the same eyes as Juniper; only Datura's had a chilled look to it, and strangely were rimmed with yellow.
Juniper Griffin (17), District Seven Female-POV
By the time Axel had come back from what Cypress explained as a, "hissy fit," the flowers in my hair had fallen out. Once I had gotten out of view of the cameras, I allowed myself to break down into sobs, spending most of my time doing such at the table. Khihan had insisted on braiding my hair, and in my disheartened state, there wasn't any energy left in me to protest. Though thankfully, the chatty Capitol citizen hadn't braided mine the same way that he had done Cypress'. Still wearing my beautiful, and new, yellow dress, my hair now was pinned up elaborately. I would have wondered why Khihan hadn't been permitted to be a stylist, if I hadn't nearly gone deaf in the entire process.
"Ah, that was Datura! Lovely girl! I remember when she was born, they had a beautiful party! I was there of course and I wore this lovely thing called a kilt! No one else wore it and would you believe it? I know! Cassandra, another Escort, actually asked me if I was wearing Gaia's, the old Victor, may she , clothes! The nerve of that woman! And speaking of women, I think that you'd do smashingly well in the Capitol, Axel! Of course you would too, Juniper darling! I just-" Khihan, thankfully, was silenced by a glare from Axel.
Reminding myself not to swoon, I took in Axel's entire form again, just in case I had missed a small detail when he had joined me up in the stage. His eyes were like angered electricity, which I imagined the people in District Five and District Three faced on a daily basis. Unlike me, Axel had pale skin, while mine was a bit tan. I suppose this might have been because my father ran the paper factory, the very one that Axel had lost his father to. When he had been given the medal from the Mayor, since he was the oldest child, I remember feeling extremely guilty, as if it had been my fault somehow. He'd seemed brooding and unapproachable, his dark hair only adding to is, and I wondered if he really did want to ally with me like Cypress had said. Honestly, I hoped he did, so maybe I could make it up to him, or at least help him in some way.
Cypress directed our attention towards her, "You two are going to be allying, correct?"
Looking at Axel, he glanced at me, our eyes meeting, drawing a blush out of me. If he noticed, I think I'd die before we even got to the Hunger Games, which would definitely be a first in the history of Panem. If it did happen, they'd probably panic and try to find some girl in District Seven who looked exactly like me, forcing her to pretend to be me. Not wanting that to happen, I looked away from him, nodding my consent towards Cypress.
"Good," she replied smiling, "That makes my job a whole lot easier. Axel, I'm thinking you'll be the brawn and Juniper will be the brains. No arguments."
Khihan added, "We'll have plenty of time for that during Training! Just agree now on when you'll split up in the Games, that way you won't have to kill each other! It's always sad and disgraceful when that happened. That's what I told Cypress when she was here. I said, 'Cypress, you can't ally with him the whole time! You need to break off!' Good thing was she spat, 'I don't want to ally with him!' And then all was well!"
Taking a calming breath, I tried to endure all of Khihan's chattering. Most of it he didn't even need to say, so I tried to focus on what really mattered in that treasure hunt of information he had created for us. Confusingly, it might have taken me about a minute to have found the actual piece of advice in there: agreeing on when to split up. Most people tended to let their partner leave around the final eight, but I couldn't help but think that it would be far too early. Axel would be the one coming out of the Hunger Games alive; he's already lost so much and I've got too much. No one would miss Juniper Griffin that much, since I was rich and wealthy, not to mention that I had both my parents along with an older sister. While Axel, he'd already lost so much, he shouldn't have to lose himself as well.
"Final five," I requested, trying to keep myself from looking away from Axel.
Truthfully, I didn't want to have to stop allying with him then. I wanted it to last until the final two, being Axel and I, in which I'd be the one to perish. But it'd be all right, I'd be fine; I'd be up there. And my parents would be able to get over it eventually, same thing with my sister, Lilac, who had turned nineteen and getting married soon. If I became an Aunt from Lilac and her fiancé, then they'd have a baby to shower their joy over. Thinking back to my goodbye, Lilac had said she'd name her daughter after me, wherever I came back from the Hunger Games or not. But if Axel died in the Hunger Games, there was no way I'd be able to live with myself, knowing that I could have done something. That I could have been quicker, that I could have been stronger, that I could have been wiser, that I could have…That I could have done something!
"Axel?" Cypress prompted, unwrapping a sweet and popping it in her mouth.
"Final Three," Axel demanded, glancing over at me, and I merely nodded, liking that he didn't want to part all that early either.
Our Mentor sighed, "That's too late. With those odds, it's very likely that you'll end up as the final two. It'll be a whole Everdeen-Mellark situation, and if you so much as hesitate, the Capitol will take one of you out themselves. You do know how the Head Gamemaker feels about our District, right?"
"I know," I replied quietly, "If it gets down to Axel and I, expect to see Axel as your Mentoring partner next-"
"No!" Axel interrupted gruffly, "You'll be the one coming home! Not me!"
Initially, I bit back, "You've lost to much, Axel! I know! So you'll be the Victor this year!" as there wasn't any way that I'd let me be the Victor like that. His ghost would haunt my days, number my hours, and breathe down my neck each and every minute. In my dreams, I would see him standing there, asking why I had to kill him. I wouldn't be able to handle that, no matter what drug that Capitol gave me, what hairstyle Khihan came up with, or what joke Cypress would share. My crush would have died by my hands, splattering his blood all over me, seeping into my very skin, and I knew it'd never truly get away. One of the things I always wondered is how the Victors managed to keep from going insane; evidently, some of them didn't. According to the textbooks, a very old Victor named Enobaria had her teeth modified into weapons. Back in the safety of the school, we all chortled at that and asked the teacher why they didn't confiscate her teeth in the incomplete Third Quarter Quell.
"I have no one, NO ONE! You have everything you want! I don't even want to go home; I just want to die here!" Axel raged, casting an eerie silence across the room, "I have no one!"
Datura Gremlin (19), Head Gamemaker-POV
"What do you mean they're not that toxic?" I screamed, throwing a glass table at the cowering Gamemaker.
Today, I had thought, would be another string of perfect days that I've been having as of lately. The crop of Tributes this year seemed to be decent, especially that striking girl from One, Cashmere, the one with the yellow eyes. Because they reminded me of my own, which were edged with the same color, I'd taken an interest in the girl. If she was this year's Victor, I'd make her into a Capitol favorite, just like the old Head Gamemaker had done to Cypress Junos. For that reason only, Uncle and I had let the District Seven Victor live, and admittedly I did feel a bit fond of her. She was like a little pet, one that I couldn't help but pet it and throw the occasional bone to. Though politically speaking, it could be used to dim the rumors of my true hatred for that despicable District Seven.
"Th-The Datura flowers aren't going to kill them, Miss Gremlin!" Argos, a balding and sickly Gamemaker stammered.
Glowering at him, my eyes narrowed, making it look as if they were a golden yellow, "Then you know what to do, right Argos?"
Argo gulped, paling even more, "I-I'll have the mutation t-team right on it, Miss Gre-Gremlin!"
Good. Everything was back on schedule. After all, everything had to be just so before my toys arrived or otherwise we won't have nearly as much fun as we could have.