QUEENOFTHEBUTTERFLIES
GALACTIC GAMES
MY GOD, YOU'RE HAIRY


Oh, goodness… I'm beyond nervous. I'm sitting here in the chariot, and we're about to enter the stadium… Ross is sitting next to be, and he doesn't seem to be doing any better. He looks up at me nervously, and I just try to smile back. I am far more nervous than I was during the reaping. This time, I know that I'm going to be in the spotlight. I know that I'm going to be watching by billions of people from thirteen different planets – if you include Panem.

"Are you ready?" Ross asks, giving me another nervous smile.

"I… no. Not in the least."

"It's ok," he says, offering me his hand. "Neither am I." I take his hand and give it a quick squeeze, but that's all I'm going to allow myself. Unfortunately, Yamynne (my stylist), sees it and gives me a thumbs up. Something tells me that she isn't as ready to let go as I am… I take a deep breath as we head into the stadium. I'm not ready for what's going to happen…

But before I get ahead of myself, though, I should probably start with the beginning of yesterday, which went by rather quickly compared to today. We had to wake up super early so that Hanya could make sure that we were the first ones to get to the transporting station… I had to go through that weird tingly feeling again, but it transported us right to the Training Center, where we would be staying for the majority of the time. We got the entire third floor to ourselves, so that was pretty cool. We each ended up getting our own room! Well, Hanya said that just to be safe, Ross and Jobain would be on the other side of the floor from Massika and I, and she would be in the middle. I don't know why – it's not like I was planning to sneak into Ross's room and do unspeakable things in the middle of the night.

Either way, I just kind of ignored Hanya's talking and went to my 'designated' room. It was just like the one on the ship, except that it was bigger, and I had it all to myself. There was a living area with fancy – and very comfortable – couches, a huge television, a coffee table… And I had my own kitchen! There wasn't any food in any of the pantries or the fridge, but it was still nice. The bedroom was just… wow. The bed was in the middle of the room, and it wasn't even on the ground! It was floating. So, naturally, the first thing I did was test it… by poking it. It didn't budge. So I pressed down with my hand, and it still didn't move. I didn't want to press my luck with the magic bed, so I just let it be and examined the rest of the room. There was another television in it (along with a bunch of strange devices with words like 'Xbox' and 'Wii' – most likely popular on Panem), a large dresser full of more formal-like clothing, and another – better – desk and computer set. So, all and all, it was just an upgrade.

I didn't get to spend too long in my new room because Massika came in and asked if I was up for any training. I told her that I was definitely ready to do something, so we cleared the living room by moving the furniture back against the walls. "We don't know what kind of field you'll be on," she clarified, probably just as a warning.

"One of the nurses told me that the arena is on Lanoria."

"It doesn't make a difference where it is," she said, putting her hands on her hips, "there are still lots of different environments you could be placed in. So… do you have any weapons skills?"

It took me a moment to realize what she was asking, but then I said, "Um… yeah. Kind of… I can use a dagger pretty well. And shuriken… ninja stars… whatever."

"Anything else? Any weapons skills you have could be important."

I closed my eyes and tried to think. Were there any other weapons I could use well…? "I… I used a sling a few times. I mean, I can hit a target, if that's what you want to know, but I'm probably a little rusty… and knives. Well, I can't throw them like you did, but I'm not terrible… and I've got a little bit of training with a spear."

"Is that all?"

Is that all? I found my skills to be fairly impressive. "Um… yeah. I think so." I bit my lip and twisted my hair around my finger. It was a nervous habit, but it didn't hurt anything, so why break it?

"Alright. When you begin your actual training, it's going to be in this building. You're going to have a few days to go in and train with the other tributes, and there are going to be all sorts of stations that you can go to. First and foremost, since you're good with daggers and ninja stars, don't go to any station that might have them. Showing off is useless until you get into the arena. Next, spend only a few minutes sharpening up your sling and spear skills. There's a better chance that you'll find those in the arena. And thirdly… do you know anything about berries and herbs?"

More thought. Yay. "A little… I mean, I know which berries are for food and which ones are for medicine… But I don't know what the medicinal ones do or anything… just that it's better to save them than to eat them." More or less, that described my medical experience perfectly.

"Ok. Spend some time learning that… you'll need it. You also might want to look into snares, camouflage, agility… things like that. Spend enough time with everything to know what you're doing, then move on. You don't need to do anything extravagant – the basics will suffice."

"Mmm… alright. So what are we going to do now?" I asked.

"Now…? Now we are going to do some training in hand to hand combat. Do you know anything about it?" She pulled hair bow off of her wrist and tied back her black hair with it. Then she popped her knuckles and stretched her shoulders some.

"Um… that it's hand to hand?" I said weakly. She just kind of glared at me, so I shut up (for the umpteenth time since this entire thing started…). I asked her if I could change into some decent grappling clothing, and she let me. It took awhile to find something that wasn't a dress, but I just had to settle for pajama shorts again. Oh, and the matching top. I pulled my hair back into a pony tail, and then I went back into the living room.

I got a little banged up, but not too much. Massika didn't want be to be injured before the chariot ride – not that the stylists couldn't fix it or anything, I'm sure. She mostly just taught me punches, kicks, and blocks… along with a bunch of different formations and combinations on how to use them. Knife hand, side kick, spinning back fist… All sorts of interesting stuff like that. We spent hours working on that, but surprisingly, I wasn't really tired afterward. I mean, I was sweaty and all, but I was actually pretty invigorated, too. Massika even told me that I had a really talent for martial arts, which I appreciated. I think that it was the first nice thing she said to me.

After the intense training session, I took a shower – still strange – and then got ready for dinner. It was still pretty hard to see all of the food laid out on the table, and I couldn't help but let my mind wander back to Brick and my mother… Were they doing ok? Getting enough food? How was Brick? His spear training? I didn't really have anyone to continue his spear lessons with him, but maybe Dad found someone… Thinking about Dad made me pretty sad, too. He was probably watching the television at the factory when he heard my name get called in the reaping… He wouldn't have been able to make it back to Carvonova to see me off, anyways. There was just no way… I still feel bad about never getting to say goodbye to him.

After another amazing dinner, Hanya told us all to be outside of her door in half an hour. I'm not sure what everyone else did for that half-hour, but I pretty much just lounged around. It was probably the last 'easy' day I'd ever have. I guess it was a good thing that Hanya got us here a day early. Even if she still resembles a maniacal leprechaun. Doesn't ever ever get tired of green…?

When I went to Hanya's room, the only other person standing in the hallway was Ross. Of course. Did I really expect anything less? For the most part, he just tried to initiate conversations with questions, and I gave him abrupt one word answers. Then Jobain came, and a few minutes later, Massika. They started talking about something – one of those television devices I think – and then Hanya came out and gave us our schedule. We were to start off the next day with our individual prep teams, and then slowly move on to our stylists. By the time they got done, we were going to be on our way to the chariot. I didn't know how long it took to beautify someone, but an entire day seemed to be quite a while… The day after the chariot, we'd begin our official training. Fun, fun, fun…

So after that little meeting, I went to bed. Getting to sleep wasn't easy, and once I finally felt as if it had been accomplished, Massika was waking me up and telling me that I needed to get ready. She told me to wear some nothing clothing since I would just be taking them off anyways. Despite the fact of it sounding a little creepy, I went along with it. I wore a simple orange dress, but I left the boots in the room because I didn't want to have to leave them with my stylist. I opted for a pair of brown leather sandals instead. We hurried off to breakfast – which was eaten rather quickly – and then Ross and I got transported. Again. After the third time… well, it was still pretty strange. It hadn't gotten much better.

I'm not entirely sure how to explain everything that happened next. I just know that I reappeared in a chair, and there were three brightly colored people around me. There was a Gnome (Gnome. Planet 8, textiles. Gnomes are known for their hunting and gathering skills, also for their ability to remain completely still. Weakness? Completely paralyzed when afraid) woman named Walizza, who was short in statue (like all Gnomes – a little shorter than Elves), and she had a strong jaw. Her skin was a very pale shade of blue, and her eyes twinkled golden. She had her bright magenta hair up in a bun, and pieces were falling in front of her face. There was an Elven man named Jabriik. His skin tone was fairly normal (albeit being a little too tan for an Elf…), but his hair was bright crimson. He was by far the tallest one of the three. And lastly, there was a human woman named Serincia. She had this dark orange skin that was oddly smooth. Her eyes were a deep violet, and her hair was in very curly blonde ringlets that only went down to her shoulders.

They all talked over me for a few minutes before Serincia told me to strip down to my unmentionables. I was uncomfortable with the idea, so I told her so, but she just glared at me and said – in a very annoyed tone – that she couldn't get anything done unless I was naked. I ended up removing all of my clothing.

They all examined me for a few minutes, and then Jabriik said something about some sort of wax, and he rushed off to one of the thousands of counters in the room and grabbed a large jar of something. At the same time, Walizza ran to get these large white fabric strips. Serincia commanded be to stand on some sort of large blue circle, and when I did, I suddenly started to float. It wasn't anything epic – just a few inches off the ground. My arms and legs spread out (which was very uncomfortable) until I looked like an Elven star, and I realized that I couldn't move. This dull blue glow was shining on me, and it was more than just a little eerie.

Suddenly my entire body felt very moist, and I saw Serincia holding up this giant sponge. Before I could ask her what she was going to do with it, Walizza asked me if I had a preferred scent. I immediately answered coconut, and then she hurried off to get something. "What's going on?" I asked.

"We have to give you a bath," Serincia said. Her tone was weird – one of those Capitol tones, no doubt – but she didn't sound exactly mean. She sounded like she was talking in an 'it just is' sort of way. It reminded me a little of Massika. "We're going to rub you down the old fashion way because it gets dirt off more effectively than the sonic showers." Sonic shower? Was that the thing in my courters?

Walizza came back with some sort of bottle, and she squirted whatever it was onto this pink fluffy thing. When she saw my questioning look, she giggled and said, "It's a luffa!" Like I knew what that was. But I didn't ask. I just let her rub the luffa all over me – despite how awkward it felt – and then Serincia washed it off with a really rough sponge. She was rubbing me really hard (and I'm sure that most of my experiences are sounding very dirty), and I wanted to ask her to stop, but I just bit my lip and waited. When she was done with me, my skin was probably going to be very red.

After about two or three layers of skin later, they were done. I felt relieved until Jabriik started to put this hot honey-like stuff on my toes. Then he put the white fabric strips on it, and yanked it off. It hurt. "Ow! What are you doing?" I asked. I had the urge to pull me feet away, but I couldn't move. That was probably why this thing had been installed…

"Relax," he said in a strange voice that sounded… British, I think…? I'm not entirely familiar with all of Panem's… eccentricities. "I'm just waxing you! My God, you're hairy!"

"Thanks…"

And while he went about shaving every part of my body – and I do mean every part, Walizza started to trim my nails up, and Serincia began washing my hair. I just stood there – or floated… whatever – and tried not to say anything. The waxing was really starting to hurt, but afterwards, it just felt all tingly. When Jabriik was done, he put some lotion on everything – I still have trouble getting over the places people wax – and it felt a whole lot better. Walizza had moved onto decorating my toenails (I would have looked to see my fingernails, but being frozen in place didn't really help with that…).

"Dear, are you going to mind if I chop off some of these beautiful locks?" Serincia asked me in a much nicer tone than she had talked to me in earlier.

"It depends. Are you going to make it look good?"

She let out a laugh. "I make everything look good." I wanted so say something about her orange skin, but we were engaged in 'playful banter', and I didn't really want to ruin it. Especially since she was the one holding the scissors. She combed back my hair some, and then I heard the snipping start. I couldn't be sure what she was doing, and I couldn't even watch my hair fall to the ground. But as it grew shorter, it started falling back around my face, and I gasped.

When she was done, Walizza also happened to be finished with my nails, and Jabriik was putting some sort of mask on my face. The two women started to take my measurements. Serincia made a comment on my lack of… a chest, and she offered to fix that for me. "Wouldn't that just slow me down? You know… the boobs and all?"

"Not at all. Not once you get used to them anyways. And face it darling. This might be the only chance you have to grow them."

After releasing some inner rage, I told her that while it was a nice offer (which it wasn't), I'd rather just grow them out myself. She said that I'd probably regret that, and I figured that she was right. In the arena, I'll probably be thinking, 'Why the hell didn't I do it? What did I have to lose?' But still… the idea was more than just a little uncomfortable.

"Well if you change your mind," she said, "you know where to come." And unfortunately, I did know where to go.

Jabriik washed the green mask thing off of my face, and then he sent Walizza to deliver the measurements to someone, and he and Serincia stayed to work on my make-up. Somehow they got my eyes to close, but with them touching my face every two seconds, I couldn't relax. I had no idea what they were putting on because none of it felt remotely similar to the make-up I used. When they were done, my eyes opened, and they smiled at their work.

"I think she's ready," Jabriik said, pressing some sort of button on one of the walls. I began to lower, and when my feet hit the ground, I almost fell. Thankfully, Serincia was prepared for this, and she caught me.

"It happens to everyone, dear," she said with a laugh.

Walizza came running back into the room, and there was the click of heels following her. "Yamynne's here!" she said excitedly, her voice trilling several octaves higher than she needed it to. "Yamynne's ready for her!"

"Who's Yamynne?" I asked, but my question was shortly answered when a woman – obviously Felpurr – with slick white fur entered the room. Her ears were like triangles that were perfectly proportioned to the shape of her sleek, cat-like head. She had a very interesting set of claws on her – as long and thin as needles – and wore a simple red tunic and matching red heels. She actually looked pretty decent compared to the other three. At least white was a natural fur color for the Felpurrs.

"Is this the girl?" she asked, walking over to be carefully to inspect. If I used irony right, than it was ironic that after hours of waxing and tweezing, my mentor was far hairier than I was.

The others just nodded, and then Yamynne smiled. "You're very pretty."

"Thank… you?" I said, although it came out as more of a question. She laughed and placed her paw on my shoulder. She didn't even scratch me with her claws – which I have to admit, was kind of impressive. If I had bad boys like those, I know that I'd constantly be scratching people – both accidentally and on purpose.

"We still have a lot of work to do…" she said, pacing away from me. "We want you to be completely unforgettable." She suddenly did an about-face and was facing me again. "Did you ever learn about the seventy-forth Hunger Games? Katniss, the girl who was on fire?"

"Of course," I nodded, glad that for once, I knew what I was talking about. "She was the most famous victor in history. She and Peeta. Star-crossed lovers."

"Excellent," she said. I wasn't sure what to think of her – her voice kept dipping between happy and creepy. It was a little… well, creepy, for the most part. "It was very unfortunate that she had that… accident." Even though it wasn't an accident. Everybody knew it – but for the sake of the Capitol, we all pretended that we didn't. Uproars had started shortly after Katniss's Victory Tour, and so President Snow – leader at that time – decided that something had to be done. In retrospect, it was kind of an accident. He meant to kill Peeta. But Katniss got in the way of that, and after she died, Peeta… Well, he… "And since then, no other stylist has ever even tried something so outlandish! Those poor, poor souls…"

"So… um… what do you have in mind, exactly?" I asked. I hoped that whatever it was involved clothing. I was starting to get a chill.

She snapped her fingers, and all three members of the prep team ran off. "You see… Planet 3 is all for electronics and firearms, is it not?"

"It is."

"Hmm. We're going for more of an electric vibe, if you will." As the prep team ran back into the room with a garment back, Yamynne continued her speech. "The basic idea behind electricity is the constant flowing of power…" They unzipped the bag as she talked, and at first, I was surprised. It didn't look as amazing as I thought it would – no where close. It was just a simple black dress with a modest neckline and three-quarter sleeves.

"Um…? Is this is?"

"I haven't finished," she said. "But that power has to come from somewhere. Which is where this dress comes in. Tell me, are you comfortable with lightening?"

I raised a newly tweezed eyebrow. "Why?"

"Because you'd better be."

I~I~I~I~I~I~I~I~I~I~I~I~I~I~I~I~I~I~I~I~I~I~I~I~I~I~I~I~I~I~I~I~I~I~I~I~I~I~I~I~I~I~I~I~I~I~I~I~I~I~I~I~I~I~I~I~I~I~I~I~I~I~I~I~I~I~I~I~I~I~I~I~I

Author's Note:

Eh… this chapter doesn't feel normal for some reason. Tell me if I'm right? :3

Oh, and I just found out the weirdest (but coolest) thing ever. My dad has a ring that passes through the men in our family! And he got it from his dad! I didn't even know that when I made up Avi's Grampa's ring! How incredibly cool is that? :3 My nephew, as the only male grandson (since I only have sisters!), will probably be getting it!

I can't remember if I said anything about Avi and medicine in any previous chapters… so I'm just going to pretend that she's semi-decent with it. :D Oh, and I take martial arts (Tae Kwon Do), so I figured that it would be cool to throw some of our moves, and techniques, and stuff in here… xD

Ehh… being the girl I am (no judging!), I must be all waxed, and shaved, and tweezed for my birthday… *shivers* This chapter is a pretty good reminder that I need to find my tweezers before it's too late! xD Maybe I'll just convince my mom to take me to get my eyebrows waxed… "But Mom! This is an emergency!"

"You are a spoiled child."

"Whose fault is that?" *glare* "Does that mean yes?" xD Aha, how I love my mother…

Twirlgirl821 – Yeah! Stupid human adrenaline… xD
ChaosUmbrella – Thanks for the birthday wishes! I'm super excited! ONE MORE DAY! :D

Blah, blah, I make mistakes, blah blah, fix them(: Oh, and… "My God, you're hairy!" xD I just love that… :D

-QOTB-