After dreaming about Rory all night, I finally wake up, drag myself into the shower, and try to recall each individual dream, though some of them were just memories replaying in my head, a lot of them were actual dreams. My favorite one had to be when Rory took me for a walk in the square.

"How's Lady doing?" he asks, kicking a rock with his foot, and it flies through the air, going out of our sights before it lands somewhere.

"Better," I tell him, for my pet had become ill, and me and mother were doing everything we could to care for her. "I'm hoping she'll pull through."

Rory smirks at me. "Hey, she's a tough one, I'm sure she'll be fine." he moves his foot to kick another rock, but I beat him to it, and he watches it sail through the air, landing a few feet away. "Not the best kicker, are you?"

It's at that point in the dream that Rory gets a punch in the arm. When I step out of the shower, I wrap a towel around myself and try to dry off, trying to hold onto the memories of the dreams, but feeling them drift away. I sigh when most of them just become a flickering image that I can hardly recall.

After I'm dried off, I put on a long-sleeved burgundy shirt, and a pair of black pants, along with some leather shoes. I'm relieved to finally look like myself after all the things my prep team did to me, but also disappointed, having liked the girl I saw on the TV screen yesterday.

Haymitch didn't say when to meet him for breakfast, but I'm hungry so I go get some anyway. When I enter the dining room, a young man, an Avox seeming to be waiting for my entry, along with a great amount of food. I load a plate with eggs, bacon, and some purple melon that oddly seems to match my shirt, which I'm sure the Avox might comment on. If, of course, he could.

Once I sit down, I stuff myself with all the food, still on my quest to gain some weight, which seems to not be going well, but at least I can't really count my ribs anymore. After finishing this, I get some beef stew, and some rolls, trying to do what Peeta did with the rolls, dipping them in hot chocolate. And admittedly, it's not bad.

My mind wanders to Katniss and mother. Mother would probably be making Katniss some breakfast...or maybe Katniss would make it, she doesn't really like mother doing things for her. Katniss would be getting ready to go to school, annoyed that she couldn't be in the woods with Gale, hunting. Two mornings ago, I was home, with her. With mother. With Rory.

I try to push them all out of my mind, because it only brings tears to my eyes, and I promised myself I wouldn't cry today. Haymitch and Peeta come in, say hello, and then get their food as well. I'm somewhat annoyed that Peeta's wearing the exact same outfit as me, because once the games begin, all this friend stuff is going to have to be over.

I'm nervous about the training, of course. I know it will give me a chance to work with my skills, get some new ones, and try to earn sponsors, and in addition, try to earn Rue as an ally, because I've already decided, she will be my ally. But, in reality, I know I will only be chilled to the bone when I see what the other tributes can do.

"So, let's get down to business. Training. First off, if you like, I'll coach you separately. Decide now." Haymitch demands.

"Why would you coach us separately?" I ask.

"Say if you had a secret skill you might not want the other to know about," says Haymitch.

I exchange a look with Peeta. "I don't have any secret skills," he says.

"Me neither, aside from healing, but my entire District knows about that." I mutter, and Peeta quietly chuckles under his breath. "You can coach us together." I tell Haymitch, Peeta just nods.

"All right, so give me some idea of what you can do," says Haymitch.

"I can't do anything," says Peeta. "Unless you count baking bread."

"Sorry, I don't. Prim, I already know you're handy with a knife," says Haymitch.

"Not really, but I'm good with plants, and my sister showed me how to handle a bow and arrow," I tell him. "I'm not great, though."

"If Katniss taught you," Peeta chimed in. "You have to be atleast great." he says, and I give him a questioning glance.

"Who's this Katniss?" Haymitch asks with a confused look.

"My older sister, she hunts. She's good." I tell him, but apparently Haymitch can tell how close I am to crying, so he tries to move onto Peeta's skills.

"You have to be able to do something." Haymitch tells him with an angry look.

"He can," I mumble. "He can lift really heavy things, and wrestle, and frost the most amazing and beautiful cakes you'll ever see." I say, trying to tell Peeta how much I admire his cakes.

Haymitch lifts an eyebrow at the last part, but shrugs it off. "Good then, try and get some more skills." he tells Peeta. "Some more usefulskills." he tries to be more specific. "How about allies?"

"I want Rue." I say on instinct.

"No surprise there," Haymitch mutters. "What about you?" he asks Peeta, but Peeta doesn't answer, he just stares blankly at Haymitch, who glares at him in return. "Fine then, don't tell me." he growls. "While you're training, stay at each other's sides, all right?" he asks, Peeta and me don't try to disagree. "Try to learn something new, throw a spear, swing a snare, anything useful." he tells us. "Meet Effie at the elevator at ten for training." he says lastly, and then walks away.

Me and Peeta both walk back to our rooms, and it dawns on me that the primrose is still tucked in my hair. Wet, battered, missing some petals, and all too close to falling out, but it's still there. I pull it out and examine it, then hand it to Peeta, and skip away to my room.

I sit around for a little while, not knowing what to do, I look around for another set of clothes, hoping to still not be twinned to Peeta, but then remember what Haymitch said about doing what our stylists said. So, I simply sit on my bed and daydream for a little while. When it's almost ten, I clean my teeth, smooth back my hair, and try to mentally prepare myself for training. I walk to the elevator to find Effie and Peeta have already arrived.

The training room ends up being far below the ground, in the elevator we're in, we're there in about half a minute. When the elevator door opens, we're greeted by a large gymnasium filled with weapons and obstacle courses. While someone pins a number 12 on my back, I examine the other tributes, and as I guessed, Peeta and I are the only ones dressed alike. We quickly join the circle of tributes, hoping to learn what to do.

A tall, athletic woman named Atala comes out and explains the different stations and a few things about the training room to us. When she stops talking, all of the tributes jump to their feet, looking for the weapons they have skill with.

"What should we do first?" I ask Peeta with a frown.

Peeta surveys the room for half a second, then says, "Can we try camouflage? I think I might be good at it."

I give him a nod and we both quietly head over to empty station, smiling at the trainers, who seem to be relieved to have people to instruct. As Peeta predicted, he is amazing with this particular station, and goes so far that I have to remind him what Haymitch said. After this we try knots, and as it turns out, I'm not half bad with setting traps or making snares, judging by how good my knots are, at least.

Over the next three days, Peeta and me go from station to station, picking up a few skills, I learn how to handle a slingshot; he manages to get some skill with a spear. I try my hand with archery; he tries his hand with throwing knives.

All of us tributes have lunch together, in the dining room off the gymnasium. The Career tributes all sit at one table, basking in their glory. Imagining their tactics for killing the rest of us, and secretly imagining how they will turn on each other. I find refuge sitting with Peeta, and sometimes Rue, with whom I become a fast friend. But that doesn't exactly mean she'll be my ally when the time comes. Sometimes during training, Rue watches us, or maybe just Peeta, I'm not entirely sure.

When the day comes for our private training with the Gamemakers, all Haymitch tells me is, "Don't screw up." It goes the same way for Peeta, and then he sends us off.

At first, it goes slow, District 1, District 2, District 3...soon enough the District 7 tributes are gone, at this point I start to talk quietly with Peeta, sometimes Rue joins in on the conversation, but she mostly just tries to whisper things to her District partner, who I think is Thresh. No matter what his name is, I'll admit; he scares me. In a matter of time, Peeta is called, and then I'm all alone.

When my name is called, I take a deep breath, and silently walk into the gymnasium. I instantly know I'm in trouble. Most of the Gamemakers look half asleep, the rest of them are drunk and singing songs. I realize that almost none of them will be paying any attention to me, and know that I will have to do something big.

At first, I try shooting some arrows at dummies, most of them hit their mark, and a few Gamemakers give me some encouraging words, some of them clap, some of them sing their drunken wine songs. I do some of my edible plant magic, which doesn't empress them much, no weapons, but I know it might help my score. I go to the slingshot, which is, my better weapon, and hope that I can hit the mark on the dummy with somewhat accuracy.

I turn to the Gamemakers to see if they are watching, no, they're admiring the roasted pig that has just arrived at their buffet table. Something in me snaps at this. Why aren't they paying attention to me? Without even thinking, my slingshot shoots, with all the aggression I had, it goes a bit harder off than I intended. Within a matter of seconds, the dummy's head rolls to the floor.

Most of the Gamemakers are looking at me now, admiring my skill with the weapon, which is pretty amazing, because it isn't the best weapon, in fact, it's one of the worst, considering all the other weapons. I look at the dummy's head again, and shudder. I start to head for the throwing knives station when I hear, "Thank you, Primrose, you may go now."

I realize I must have done something wrong, and gulp down the lump in my throat, then leave the room silently.

At dinner, I don't pay any attention, in fact, I daydream again. Cinna and Portia talk a little but not much, Effie seems worried about our scores, and Haymitch seems...Haymitch.

"Okay, enough small talk, just how bad were you today?"

Peeta jumps in. "I don't know that it mattered. By the time I showed up, no one even bothered to look at me. They were singing some kind of drinking song, I think. So, I threw around some heavy objects until they told me I could go."

That makes me feel a bit better about what happened with the slingshot, I should be happy about the dummy's head, I know, and yet, I suddenly feel lethal, like I could do that to a real person.

"And you, sweetheart?" says Haymitch.

"I uh..." I try to recall every bit of what happened. "I shot some arrows, and showed them my edible plants skills, and shot the head off a dummy with a sling shot, and-"

"Really?" Haymitch asks, not sarcastic, but surprised. "Never heard that one before, you must be pretty good." he grins at me, and I smile back.

"Maybe." I say, somehow Haymitch has managed to make me feel a little better, but just a little.

After dinner, we go to sitting room to watch the scores announced on television. First they show a photo of the tribute, then flash their score below it. The Career Tributes naturally get in the eight-to-ten range. Most of the other players average a five. Surprisingly, Rue comes up with a 7. I don't know what she showed the judges, but it must have been impressive.

District 12 comes up last, as usual. Peeta pulls an 8 so at least a couple of the Gamemakers must have been watching him. I dig my fingernails into my palms as my face comes up, expecting something awful. The dummy couldn't have possibly impressed them that much. That's when the number 10 flashes on the screen.

Cheers erupt in the room, and I get the oddest feeling that they're not for Peeta. Everyone's so happy about our scores, I'm a little happy too, I can tell Peeta is.

"How did...?" I can't even finish my question.

"They must have liked you're slingshot trick!" Haymitch declared. More cheers, Peeta and I congratulate each other happily. I try to get to my room as quick as I can, when I do, I don't even bother with a nightgown and just burrow under the covers, the number 10 flashing behind my eyelids.