Konstance and the other volunteer from District 2 had been shuttled to a waiting train, and were now sitting across from each other as they made their way to the Capitol. Konstance had been too preoccupied with his own situation earlier to catch the girl's name, and he now found that he didn't really feel like asking. She was smaller than the usual volunteers from the district and had grey eyes and a pointed nose under a head of smooth black hair. Konstance watched the girl across from him as she stared out the window, expertly twirling a butter knife through her fingers in boredom.

The girl was calm and focused, seemingly ignoring him, and Konstance was fine with that. He turned his attention instead to the large screen in front of them that was airing games coverage. The show was currently showing the highlights of the reapings thus far, building up to a live showing of the reaping in District 5.

District 1 sported the usual two volunteers, though the girl, Chayonna Davis, did not seem to take it as well as the boy did. Her name was called twice before she even registered it, and when she finally did, she had looked confused. It almost seemed like she hadn't expected to be chosen, but if she hadn't wanted to be picked, why would she have volunteered?

Then again, Konstance thought to himself, the same could be asked of me.

Next, he saw himself and the girl who had joined him on the train. He hadn't been paying much attention when he had volunteered earlier, focused only on finding the courage and willpower to do so, and now learned the girl's name: Amagi Blade. She had volunteered and was carrying the same cold, emotionless stare that she had now. After she had taken her place on stage, he saw himself volunteer. As he watched himself on the screen, his cold detachment from the world seemed uncomfortably obvious. Before he could begin to brood about this, however, the coverage moved to the next district.

The reaping in District 3 actually turned out to be rather interesting. The girl, Lisa Stillwater, a small mousey 14-year-old, was trembling and bawling as she reached the stage, but was otherwise reaped without incident. However, when the male tribute was called, someone in the audience began madly rioting, throwing chairs and punches at any peacekeeper who dared get close enough. From the physical similarities, Konstance guessed it was the boy's father.

The whole incident lasted less than thirty seconds, but Konstance was impressed that it took no less than six peacekeepers with stun guns to finally subdue him. Konstance vaguely wondered why they hadn't just shot him- it seems like the thing a peacekeeper would do- before coverage moved to the next reaping.

District 4 sported a girl volunteer, which wasn't very common for that district. She seemed almost bored, as if she simply had nothing better to do that day than volunteer for the Games. Next, a tall, wiry 17-year-old, Tomas Waters, was reaped. He looked like he had some sort of permanent limp and almost tripped as he stepped up onto the stage. Konstance couldn't help feeling a pang of pity for the boy and his unfortunate situation.

In District 5, the air was heavy with tension. It might have been a trick of the camera, but it looked like the girl, Joule Tribble, had begun walking to the stage before her name had even been called, as if she was sure that out of all the names in the container, there was no doubt that hers would be the one drawn. The male that was reaped was visibly distraught. As the acne-covered boy made his way toward the stage, Konstance could see in him the pain and self-blame that he himself had felt just a few hours ago. Konstance was suddenly flooded with another wave of guilt about what he had done. Why had he volunteered? How could he not have thought about Bethany?

"You're not trying to eat that thing, are you?"

Konstance snapped out of his trance to see Amagi Blade, who was now studying him with narrowed eyes. She had stopped twirling the butter knife, and was now pointing it toward a bowl of fruit sitting in a wooden bowl on the table between them. "There's apples if you're hungry, you know."

Konstance suddenly noticed that while he had been watching the District 5 reaping, he had brought Bethany's gold ring up and was now pressing it against his lips. Konstance declined the offer with a wave of his hand, then put the band back into his pocket.

Amagi shrugged, then stabbed one of the fruits with the blade, brought it over, then plucked it off the end with her free hand. She turned her gaze back out the window as she began to eat it with loud, crunching bites.

The ride from District 2 to the Capitol was a short one, and Amagi barely had time to finish the apple before the trip was over. The two were getting off the train only ten minutes after they had boarded. The train pulled into the station packed with Capitolites cheering them on, but they had only stayed there a short time. They had smiled and waved merrily before being pulled into a holding room to wait for the other tributes to arrive. Though the Capitolites got a taste of the tributes as the trains rolled in, the real debut was during the parade later that night. As they stepped into the holding room, the tributes from District 1 were already there waiting for them.

Because the District 1 and District 2 tributes always teamed up for the first part of the Games, it was customary for the two to meet up well before the training sessions. There was plenty of time to kill before they needed to meet their stylists, and grouping together beforehand was an old strategy that was meant to make the inner district tributes seem more intimidating to the others, who were each more or less alone when they first enter the training center.

When Konstance and Amagi approached them, Flash nodded his head in acknowledgement and Chayonna raised her hand and waved lazily, without looking up. She seemed completely absorbed with the same book that she had been carrying during the reaping. In person, Konstance couldn't help but notice that the girl was kind of cute.

Seeing his chance to talk to her, he walked over to Chayonna and asked, "Hey, what are you reading?"

Flash sighed and his face fell with annoyance. "Good luck. She's doesn't talk to anybody. She's had her nose in that book since the reaping", he sneered. Thinking about it for a second, he corrected himself. "No, since before the reaping."

At this, Amagi walked swiftly over to Chayonna, snatched the book out of her hands, and examined it. She laughed when she read the title.

"The Annals of Loria? Seriously? You're reading this?", Amagi asked in mock incredulity, her mouth curving up into a wry smile.

Chayonna crossed her arms and responded defensively, "Oh, like you've never read it."

Amagi laughed and rolled her eyes. "Yea, maybe when I was nine", she cackled.

She tossed the book to Flash, who caught it lazily with one hand, glad for something to cure his boredom. He proceeded to hold it up over his head where he knew Chayonna couldn't reach it. He gave her a smirk, but Chayonna just glared at him, refusing to give him the satisfaction of jumping up and grabbing for it.

Konstance admired the girl's refusal to play Flash's game, but stepped back, not particularly wanting to take part in this hazing ritual. Still, he wanted Chayonna to know that he was on her side.

"Come on, Flash, give her the book back", Konstance chided.

Though Konstance was two inches taller than him, Flash had a bigger ego. He rounded on Konstance, his eyes going wide.

"Ooh, pretty boy is trying to defend his girlfriend. Whatcha gonna do about it? You gonna make me?" Flash was clearly daring him to try something, but Konstance was unaffected by his taunts. The refusal to play his game annoyed Flash. He was about to throw another series of mocking remarks at Konstance, but he was cut off.

While Flash was distracted by Konstance, Chayonna suddenly thrust her open palm forward and struck Flash square in the sternum. He let out a grunt of pain and lost grip on the book. While he was stunned, Chayonna grabbed him by the elbow and the shoulder and flung him face down into the ground. The wind was knocked out of him, and Chayonna added insult to injury by promptly sitting on his back, pinning him down.

"Aikido", she calmly informed Konstance and Amagi, who were watching this spectacle with stunned amusement. Chayonna used one hand to hold Flash at bay with a supinating wristlock as she daintily picked up her book with the other hand.

"Thanks Konstance!" Chayonna chirped, smiling at him with a wide grin. Amagi doubled over in laughter and Konstance slightly blushed at the sound of her voice saying his name. Chayonna, still smiling and looking up at Konstance, rotated Flash's wrist and he let out a groan of agony. Then, she opened her book back up and continued reading as if nothing had happened.

Chayonna still had Flash pinned when the train from District 4 rolled in.

Konstance and Amagi looked over as the train ground to a halt halfway down the station platform. Expecting to see the two tributes from four step out, they were both surprised when the door burst open, and Tomas Waters tumbled out head over heels, rolled across the platform, and skidded to a stop about five meters from the train. He was still recovering, rubbing his head in confusion, as a girl appeared in the open doorway of the passenger car.

"Serves you right", she spat at the boy indignantly, then strode confidently toward the still stunned District 1 and 2 tributes.