AUTHOR'S NOTE: And here's the moment we've been waiting for-the scours for our tributes! Vincent and Korra get to learn who (if anyone) won their bet, and we get a little more intel on what happened during the infamous 77th Hunger Games, which is the only time a 12-year-old ever came out of there alive. Otherwise, just a bit more scene-setting and other fancy things. Happy Reading!
CHAPTER 10: The Scores
"So now it's just a matter of waiting to see our scores," Korra indicated as they got back to the 2nd floor.
"Even then though," Amy warned, "scores do not always dictate the odds of winning. Remember Aveline form the year before mine? She scored a 5."
"True, but clearly she was holding back somehow," Vincent noted, "that girl was a fighter."
"Ikki Ortolani didn't hold back 16 years ago," Amy warned, "and she scored a 4—and won her games."
"I hear a lot about her," Korra tilted her head, "how do you know about her though either? I was a baby when she won, and you weren't even born yet, Amy."
"It's called doing research," Amy chuckled, "but she is also significant because not only was she the youngest victor to ever win the games, but she is also the only kid under 14 to ever do so."
"You're one of the youngest victors too though, right?" Vincent reminded her,
"Me, Leto, and then two boys, yes." Amy indicated, "Finnick Odair from District 4, and Alice DeSiete from District 8. We're the only 14-year-olds to win. No 13-year-olds have ever won the games, and a 12-year-old has won once—that was Ikki."
"Were the careers idiots that year or something?" Korra tilted her head, "how the hell do you get outsmarted by a 12-year-old?"
"Three of them scored perfectly, actually," Amy quipped, "and the other three scored 11s. See—Ikki is an example of how kids can be dangerous. She came from a family of electricians, and knew a few things going into the arena. She spent most of her time rigging up almost the entire place, and so when the careers finally decided to turn on her at the end, she simply activated her electric traps, frying them all in such a drastic way that I'm sure Beetee was proud."
"What's your point with that story?" Korra asked, raising an eyebrow, "I don't think Koshu or his partner are electricians, or even 12-year-olds."
"My point is that until a cannon goes off and their face appears in the sky, every tribute, no matter how big or small or old or young—is a threat. Do not ever stop believing that for an instant."
"That… is a fairly valid point," Vincent nodded, "Glad to know you're on our side, Amy."
"But of course," Amy chuckled. "Now let's kick back and see what those scores are…"
A few hours later after Sacajawea and Jeremy from District 12 finished their private sessions, Delun came in, flipping on the television. "Training Scores are coming up!" he beamed, "and don't go too far afterwards—Misaha and Zakuya should be ready with your interview outfits soon!"
Naturally, Korra and Vincent bounded for the sofa, jumping over the back and into the seats as they watched the anthem play before scores, faces, and odds began to show.
"Cobalt Efran; District 1, with a score of… 9"
"Ready to lose that bet?" Korra elbowed her partner playfully.
"Vivian Nelson; District 1, with a score of… 10"
"Pfft, I've got this in the bag," Vincent chuckled, "and to the Vincent go the spoils!"
"Vincent Caruso; District 2, with a score of… 12"
"Welp, there it is!" Vincent continued, "Beat that, Korra."
Korra Francisco; District 2, with a score of… 11"
"Son of a bitch," Korra swore. "welp, you won. Fine." She crossed her arms, pouting.
"Koshu Varada; District 3, with a score of… 9"
"Oh, relax…" Vincent ruffled Korra's hair, "it was just a bet. You have nice hair, by the way."
"Argenta Lao; District 3, with a score of… 8"
"Was that your best attempt at flirting, Vincent?"
"Zack Plumas; District 4, with a score of… 6"
"It worked, didn't it? I also never noticed your freckles either. Those are cute."
"Tiffany Chung; District 4, with a score of… 7"
"Stop with this cute thing." Korra pushed at him.
"Darian Croft; District 5, with a score of… 8"
"Well… you two are certainly no Marcus and Amy," Clove quipped as she stepped in.
"Anna Rosario; District 5, with a score of… 9"
"Well of course they aren't" Amy quipped, "no one can be as awesome as Marcus was."
"Garrett Locke; District 6, with a score of… 11"
"I'm biased of course though," Amy added, "also—that kid's gonna be trouble. Watch out for him."
"Alayna Marth; District 6, with a score of… 5"
"His partner won't be though," Korra quipped, but slowly the conversation grew quiet as everyone watched and analyzed the tributes, their odds, and their scores.
"Carlos Zianja; District 7, with a score of… 7"
It seemed almost fitting for a District 7 kid, although Korra also recalled that they used to be a much more potent force than they were recently. Then again, the same thing could be said about District 4.
"Joan DeLaRosa; District 7, with a score of… 7"
Korra might not have known as much as Amy or Clove, but even she knew that some years, a district would produce powerful tributes, and other years they'd have mere fodder.
"Zhao Takoda; District 8, with a score of… 8"
There were some exceptions, at least as of late though. Districts 1 and 2, for example, almost never produced bloodbath fodder, and those that did die in such a way were almost never forgotten.
"Suzanne Weaver; District 8, with a score of… 6"
District 11 had also not had a bloodbath tribute in years though—and had a pretty respectable victor's pool to boot.
"William Parks; District 9, with a score of… 5"
District 5 was an odd case—they often produced an occasional bloodbath tribute, but they had more victors than all but the two career districts.
"Melinda Franz; District 9, with a score of… 4"
District 12 was a trickier case, in Korra's mind. On one hand, they were clearly a rising star, but on the other, there were still bloodbath fodder tributes, such as Ava's brother from the 91st Hunger Games, and several others in recent years before that.
"Edmund Clarke; District 10, with a score of… 4"
Other districts, like 10 and 9, were usually fodder year after year. Korra and Vincent both felt that this one would be no different. Then again, Amy's words rang through her head once again. Maybe she shouldn't be underestimating of even the most fodder-like of tributes.
"Himoto Takeshi; District 10, with a score of… 6"
"I remember last year Marcus and I made a bet about who would die first," Amy piped up, "although it ended up happening only because he got in my way before anyone else."
"Sheaf Twallan; District 11, with a score of… 10"
"Betting's just something we do around here," Clove quipped, "but be careful—we're getting into the dangerous territory once again."
"Laura Talahasi; District 11, with a score of… 10"
"Definitely solid threats," Amy indicated, "Be careful of them."
"Jeremy Pescado; District 12, with a score of… 9"
"Seems those three have a pretty solid alliance then," Korra piped up, "we definitely should—"
"Sacajawea Kwan; District 12, with a score of… 12"
"Wow; Seems we made a good choice in recruiting her," the girl's jaw dropped a little.
"Nothing that another perfect-scorer can't handle," Vincent joked. "y'know—when the time comes."
Korra's mind was deep in thought, however, as the others got up around her. Saki had scored perfectly, and she had scored an 11. The kids from District 11 had scored even higher than Dante and Cherry, the kids from last year—and that devious pair had gone down in history as a nefarious set of tributes that had been able to command some of the arena mutts.
Vincent had outscored her, but she wasn't worried about him until the endgame. The other threat was going to be that large District 6 boy.
Her mind was briefly taken off of that, however, when Delun reappeared with the white-haired stylist pair in tow.
"I think we all know what time it is." He grinned.
Korra and Vincent might not have been the most fashionistic tributes to grace these halls, but it was a nice departure from knowing that in less than 24 hours, a good handful of this building's occupants would be dead. Besides, in most cases the Capitol spared the tributes from their outrageous fashion and instead put them into things that were flashy but attractive. District 8, despite its notorious disdain for the Capitol, actually did particularly enjoy their stylists.
Korra was slightly irked that Misaha would not speak to her at all, but as she and Vincent parted ways, she truest that Amy knew what she was talking about when she said that they were the best of the best.
Misaha began by pointing at Korra's clothes, before moving her finger downward, indicating for the younger girl to strip down. With a shrug, Korra did so, revealing a very athletically toned body structure. Nodding approvingly, she instructed Korra to step into a nearby chemical bath much like the ones they had experienced on the trains.
After Korra was cleaned and dried, it was time for her to get dressed and styled. Instead of saying anything, the stylist simply put her fingers on Korra's eyes to close them.
"You want me to close my eyes?" the tribute opened her eyes to see Misaha's answer. She nodded.
Korra closed her eyes and waited. She could feel lotion and makeup being applied to her skin, and the woman even went as far as to dress Korra herself. Korra sat down and stood back up multiple times, but while she couldn't say that this was not slightly awkward, she trusted in the results.
Her trusts were not misguided. When she was finally instructed to open her eyes (the stylist had very gentle fingers that pressed to Korra's eyelids), she actually gasped. Korra was looking at a mirror image of a light-skinned girl with a striking red and orange dress that almost clashed with her auburn hair. She took a few steps, hearing the click of her glittery heels that could be seen beneath the skirts of her dress. There were bangles on her otherwise bare arms, and the dress had a low neck and back to show off Korra's near-chiseled muscular structure.
"It's beautiful!" Korra exclaimed, "I… thank you."
Misaha simply smiled, giving something of a bow to show her acknowledgement, before Korra left the studio to meet up with Vincent.