Well, better luck sleeping than last night… I actually got a few hours! Everyone else seems in a better mood today now that we know what to expect in the training room. We walk into breakfast and Icirrus is talking Monikka's head off. She's sitting at the table with her face in her palm rolling her eyes as our oblivious escort keeps rambling on about what the other District escorts are talking about their tributes.
She looks up at us and appears slightly relieved when she sees new/semi-normal faces. "So you know what the game plan today is, correct?" Monikka interrupts, "Focus mainly on the combat skills so you can get all of your whimpy asses into shape."
"Ha. That means so much coming from you. Maybe you should practice some combat skills so you can SLIM that ass of yours down!" Vi retorts.
"Oh you're such a sweetie. I'll remember that when I'm trying to convince sponsors to send you parachutes in the arena," Monikka snaps back. We all start busting out laughing. Even Monikka lets out a chuckle or two… maybe three. Icirrus seems to be the only one not understanding the sarcastic relationship between the team.
We finish up our delightful breakfast and the four of us head over to the training room.
Apparently the other Districts have the same periodic schedule as us, because the same Districts are already in the room as yesterday. We start up a conversation with 11 again, this time getting to know everyone a little better.
Mack is absolutely hilarious. He seems to be a pretty happy guy. He's the oldest of six kids, so he was used to lightening up his younger siblings' moods during tough times. Mallow is the same as yesterday. Very nice and open. Harper is kind of intimidating. She's definitely the quiet one of the group, but she appreciates a sarcastic jest here and there and would be a useful ally to have. Finishing out the quartet, Rayven is hyper and all over the place. She is so quirky, yet powerful. Another great possibility for an ally.
We're interrupted by Zaire, the Head Trainer, as she dismisses us from the gathering place and on to the training stations. This time Vi and I pair up and we head off to the sword fighting station. I'm not too impressive at this station. I'm able to block and parry some strikes, but I get hit with the rubber sword far more than I like. I think that even Violette has me beat in this category. We head over to the obstacle course and we both excel greatly there with our speed and agility.
We proceed over to the test our abilities in axe throwing. The two boy tributes from District 9 are there practicing, as well. Funny… last time I saw them this close, they were wearing hideous grain costumes. I let out a chuckle and the older one, Baxter I think, gives me a questioning stare. The other guy doesn't talk to us the entire time, but Baxter tries to start up conversations here and there. Eh, we'll pass on them. It turns out that I'm great with axe throwing. I hit the target, not directly in the middle unfortunately, every single time. Vi is decent at it, if only she had a bit more upper-body strength.
We take a break for lunch and meet up with Ryann and Dani. They tested out the archery, knife-throwing, and weight lifting stations, so we decided to hit those up after lunch.
I take it easy at the archery station. I use the opportunity mainly to get a feel for a bow and arrow again, since I haven't touched one in a week. I take a couple of shots, purposely missing the target each time. Vi knows how to shoot a little because of me, but she rarely hits the targets when she shoots.
We lift some weights, working on all of the body areas, then finish at the knife throwing station. I only miss the target four out of fifteen tries, so I'm not half bad. Vi mimics what I did at the archery station. She hits exactly where she aims, right outside the target. Her form is amazing, her aim is (purposefully) off. The four Career tributes from 1 are at the station giving us piercing stares as they personally judge our abilities.
Finally, we're dismissed up to our floors as the training day ends.
At dinner, we let Monikka know our attempt with an alliance with District 11 has progressed and our days were very successful. When they all clear out, we decide to pop in another Hunger Games and "enjoy" the show.
We find the third victor of District 10 pretty easily. It was the awful 61st Games where they only had spiked clubs to bludgeon each other to death with. Kincaid Lawson, the winner that year, was the male Tribute from District 10 that was Reaped for the 3rd Quarter Quell. He was the last tribute to win for District 10 before the second rebellion.
These Games were gruesome and bloody. The sandy, mild desert became blotched with blood. Kincaid was an attacker compared to the other District 10 Victors. He killed three other Tributes before the final showdown between him and the Boy from 7 (most of the Careers died in a sandstorm). In the end, though badly beaten to a pulp, Kincaid obviously came out victorious and became District 10's third Victor.
As unsettling as those Games were, I was still able to get a decent night's sleep.
Our camaraderie with District 11 escalated quickly the final day in the training room. We were laughing and joking and teasing. Vi called Mallow ugly to his face, he recommended that she goes straight into the Bloodbath and try to pick a fight with every Career she comes by; Mack keeps trying to trip us as we walk in front of other tributes, and Ryann pushed him into the scary girl from 2: things like these to show we're bonding brought out the best of us. We even invited them to our lunch table today.
I partner with Ryann that day as we mix and match between combat and survival skills. I worked on mainly trying to teach him how to perfect his swimming stroke so he can practice his speed along with technique. The young girl from 12 seems to be getting the strokes down, but younger tribute boys from 3 and 5 seem to be struggling with the whole thing. They can't even tread water.
Once dismissed, we are all too tired to watch another Games after dinner. The three days of training have finally gotten to us.
We gave Monikka our day's review then headed straight to bed. Tomorrow was going to be a busy day. One-on-one training with a team member and then our interviews. Violette is with Icirrus (she won't handle that well at all). Dani is with Conrad. Ryann is with Natalia. Aaaaand, that leaves me with Monikka. Wonderful.
