A/N: I am terrible at coming up with outfits! It just isn't my thing, so excuse that aspect of this chapter, which I tend to gloss over a lot! One more down until the Games...

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Beryl Tilling, Reporter

The excitement in the air is palpable, the same as it is every year. People have spent weeks building up this much energy. Once the Reapings started, the frenzy only increased. I understand the excitement, but I will never understand the people who start betting before the training scores are out. "I bet you half of a week's pay he won't make it passed the first day!" "Oh, no, I'll put a whole month's salary on her, top three at least." Anyone foolish enough to bet upon first glimpse of a tribute deserves to lose their money.

"What do you think, Beryl? Which districts have caught your eye this year?" I turn and raise an eyebrow at my assistant.

"You know I don't like to speculate this early in the Games. Besides, we're about to get a nice behind the scenes look. I wouldn't want to bet before I've even seen that." My assistant and I are careful and quiet. Our job is simply to capture what goes on while the tributes prepare for the Chariot Parade, without them noticing what we're doing. Many of them are so busy or just nervous, and wouldn't notice a humongous camera even if it were right in their faces. Fortunately, technology being what it is, we're able to wear tiny little cameras that fit in convenient places, such as on top of hats, or even through sunglasses. It's quick and painless for all involved – to them, we just appear to be two more Capitolites.

Usually, the behind the scenes footage fetches a nice chunk of money, depending on what we catch. Of course, Caesar Flickerman and Co always pay handsomely for the victor's footage, so they can air it during the victor's interview. Most other tributes tend to collect a fan base of their own, so that even after they die, merchandise bearing their likeness can still be sold.

"Are you all set?" I look back and she nods. "Okay, then, it's time to go in." I take a deep breath and push the door open. It's one thing to see someone on TV, and another to meet see them in person. In person, people tend to seem smaller and younger. The youngest tributes tend to look even more pitiful, and even the oldest and toughest tend to appear smaller somehow.

As usual, the first thing we notice upon entering the room is pandemonium. The large room is filled with people rushing back and forth and every which way, some carrying articles of clothing, some with makeup or jewelry. The tributes seem lost in the chaos. The majority just stand there awkwardly, watching their stylists and each other with a wary eye. A few seem to be puffing out their chests, expanding themselves, as though they were already going to be emerging as victors. I belong here as much as anyone else. More so. Someone has to capture this for the public. I begin my walk around.

Thankfully, I have a good memory; usually I can remember who is from what district on sight. Immediately to my left are what appears to be District 3. Both are younger, from what I can remember; under fifteen. As much as District 3 is typically written off, people tend to forget that the district itself is known for its intelligence. These two might not look like much, but who knows?

The boy appears morose and pouty. He stands there without speaking, watching the proceedings as though it were his funeral. The girl, however, has taken more interest in her surroundings. She glances about inquisitively, as though carefully taking in everything around her. Her eyes land on me watching her. I meet her stare head on, projecting what I hope to be an impassive gaze. From this point on, they're going to be watched every second anyway, so why not get them used to it early on?

Slowly, I move away from them and onto the next district. The boy is unmistakably District 4's Flynn Rowan. He appears to be a jovial person, joking with the stylist and laughing over the matching mermaid costumes they've been given to wear. He's holding up a clamshell bra to his chest and exaggerating his walk; I can only assume he's pretending to be female. The District 4 girl, Memory, is quiet and thoughtful. I can see she is nowhere near as loud and boisterous as her district partner, which might be a good thing. Though she wasn't the volunteer that we've come to expect from 4, I have no doubt she's got something hidden up her sleeve, or else someone would have volunteered for her. She is smiling and chatting quietly with her stylist, who seems to be showing her how to stand up steadily in her mermaid tail.

I glance across the room, to see my assistant making her way through a tangle of escorts and mentors, attempting to reach the District 12 tributes. I slow down my walking in front of the next pair in front of me: District 2. Unfortunately we seem to have been a bit late this year, or perhaps they're only starting earlier, because the tributes are starting to climb into the carriages. Damnit. Mason, the male from 2, holds himself like a king. He knows he's tough and strong, and is trying to portray himself as the typical alpha male. And though I know what the girl, Lux, looks like from the Reapings, I'm still stunned. With those bouncy blonde curls and bottle green eyes, I'd expect her to hail from 1. She's just too immaculate in her appearance to be from a district known for its toughness.

"Beryl," I hear, and turn to see the familiar face of one of the escorts. "You're going to miss the start of the parade. You'd better hurry on out! " I've only gotten three districts. I hope my assistant has managed to get more than I have. We meet up on the way to the stands, where we have front row seats.

"7, 11, and 12," she sighs without me having to say anything. We've only managed to get half of the districts this year – we'd better hope that one of those districts has a victor this year, otherwise our paychecks are going to be significantly less than usual. All of a sudden, the crowd perks up and begins to cheer. The parade has begun.

Emerging first, as they do every year, is the pair from 1. With her long blonde hair, the girl could almost be a sister to the 2 girl. Their stylists have taken an interesting, but not unheard of route this year, dressing them as royalty. They wear crowns with jewels in them, and beautiful clothing obviously made from the finest fabrics. Their fingers and necks glitter with jewels. As is usual, their carriage draws loud cheers, particularly as the pair waves and smiles to the adoring crowd.

Next is 2. They stand tall and proud in their knight's armor. The only thing they don't wear is the helmet typically worn by knights. The boy is still puffed out and arrogant looking; the girl is enthusiastically blowing kisses, as difficult as it might be in the restricting armor.

3 doesn't usually make much of an impression, but due to being followed by two Career districts, the crowd is still eager to applaud for something. Their stylists haven't really done anything unique with them – how many years in the past have 3 tributes been dressed as scientists? The two are at completely opposite ends of the spectrum – the boy is still staring out sullenly, his body rigid. The girl, on the other hand, waves shyly to the crowd, her curious eyes still roving out over everything and everyone.

4 brings the usual amount of enthusiastic cheering for a career district, especially as the tributes are half naked.

The girl from 5 is a weak looking thing, with freckles splashed across her face. She looks nervous, but determined to make a good impression, and is smiling shyly at the crowd. The boy is something else. I recall his name being something strange, not Vance but… Vayne! That was it. Vayne appears dead on his feet, with absolutely no expression on his face at all. His brown hair is long and covers half of his face, but in the half you can see, there is nothing. The crowd reacts poorly to this; they enjoy tough, sullen tributes from Career districts, but not emotionless robots from lesser districts. In addition to that, he was a volunteer. If he wasn't even planning to try to impress the crowd, what was the point in volunteering? Most tributes tried everything they could to give themselves a leg up, especially the volunteers who usually knew how this game was played. Making yourself look poorly in front of the very people who could potentially save your life with a sponsor gift was something only an idiot would do.

After the confused whisperings and silence that greeted the 5 chariot, it took the crowd a few moments to regain their enthusiasm for the 6 tributes, leaving an awkward silence until they were about a quarter way across the road. Both tributes appeared full of wonder at the large crowd before them and stared around, wide eyed and shy. Cute tributes rarely won, especially if they were as small as these two, but who knew? It was entirely possible one had something useful hidden up their sleeve that they would discover in training. Either way, they both fit into the cute, overwhelmed by the experience tribute mold that many found endearing and some would even sponsor.

7's chariot pulled out, with the boy visibly shaking and the girl appearing rough and strong. She was an unusually tall girl that took my attention away from the quaking boy next to her. There was something about her that while not necessarily fierce, made her appear tough. If she felt any fear, the crowd didn't witness it at all.

8 was a pair of unusually lively tributes for that district. Usually, the districts got more and more boring and people paid less attention the higher up the numbers got. But 8 was garnering a fair amount of attention for their clownish attitudes. Something about the boy's face screamed "mischief! Watch out for me!" all over it. They were leaning back to back in the chariot, so I didn't see the girl at first until suddenly they switched. About halfway down the trail, the two did what appeared to be a little shimmy on the chariot and suddenly the girl, face full of laughter, was waving enthusiastically at the crowd. The crowd, in turn, remained just as enthusiastic about the two of them, whooping and cat calling them until their chariot disappeared from view.

It was a shame the 9-ers couldn't see what their predecessors had done, or they might have gotten a more passionate greeting. The two, dressed up as stalks of wheat, appeared wooden, smiling unconvincingly at the crowd. After many years of watching the Hunger Games and the chariot rides and interviews that happened beforehand, it was almost always obviously to the crowd when someone was faking their smile and really didn't want to be there. These two were terrible actors.

10 produced a weedy boy with olive skin and short brown hair. The girl next to him was impressive; tall, muscular, and fierce. She looked as dangerous as any Career. She didn't bother waving and trying to gather favor with anyone, but stood there on the chariot as determined and god-like as Mason of District 2. Her orange hair popped and made her stand out; even in the overalls the farming hats the two were made to wear. Of course, plenty of tributes played tough until the Games actually began. At least one tribute a year tended to play the "big man" to everyone (excepting the Careers, of course, who would never accept that treatment) only to be cut down in the Bloodbath a few days later.

By 11 and 12, I can tell the crowd is restless. They are done with the parade and want something bigger and better to happen. Besides, 11 and 12 almost never produce victors, so it's almost a waste watching them, isn't it? At least, that seems to be the prevailing view. Some of these people have been here for the better part of the day, waiting to watch this parade, to get the first glimpse of the tributes before the parade. 11 produces a tough boy and small girl. 12 has two average looking tributes, both districts ordinary enough that they don't hold anyone's attention. If I had to bet at this point (which would be completely foolish of me, which is why I don't bother) I wouldn't place bets on any of the tributes either.

I do notice what everyone else has tuned out already. I notice the girl from 11 is completely fascinated by everything around her- a common occurrence when a little girl from a barbarian district such as 11 comes to the Capitol. Though I've never been out to 11 myself, I've seen the footage of what that district looks like, and thank heaven every day that I've never had to step foot in such a ugly area. I notice that her district partner is angry and portrays it even in his stance- arms crossed, face defiant.

I notice that the boy and girl from 12 must have had some kind of falling out, or perhaps they already knew each other from home and didn't like each other there. Their body language tells me more than most people will catch. I nudge my assistant. "You said you got 12?" I murmur, eyes still watching the two curiously.

"Yeah," the answer comes, eagerly. "Something about a building being defaced; I guess her father is the mayor and got in huge trouble for what he did."

Interesting. Will these two be able to work together? The tributes from 12 tend to stick together, unless they die in the Bloodbath (which, I will admit, the chances are pretty high of that happening, if we're to go by years past). If that doesn't happen and these two splinter... Could we be looking at a potential betrayal? Suddenly, I can't wait to look at the footage we did get. For once, 12 might be among the more interesting districts this year.