8/27/14

Hi again! Okay, so maybe I've hit a slight writers block for this, but I'll get over it. And if I don't? Well, I always finish my stories, so I'll just force myself to write. Trust me, that's the best way to get over writers block. For me it's usually just laziness mixed with even more laziness.

Thank you Demiwizardtributeinitiate for following and Brittanypehlke for following and favoriting.

Reviews:

ArtemisCarolineSnow- Right, it normally doesn't happen though.

Demiwizardtributeinitiate- Thanks! I do try to keep things interesting :)

Brittanypehlke- Sure, I'll check it out!

Annabeth- TheTributeThatLived- Thanks! I'm too much of a cat lover to not be a Tigris fan, and since Katniss said that Tigris was a stylist in one of the earliest Games she could remember, I figured that it was probably around Finnick's Games.

Disclaimer: I do not own The Hunger Games or anything else I may mention.

…..

Chapter 10: The Call

"So I'm guessing Marina's a mermaid?" I ask, looking in the mirror at my pirate costume. It is, after all, the traditional costumes for District 4. Sure, we usually get a couple spins on things here and there, but it's usually a pirate and a mermaid.

"Well, she was going to, until I said something about it. But when you think about it, it just doesn't match. Spook didn't like it, but she's a pirate like you," Tigris says.

"She'll like that better," I say. "I mean, she loved mermaids as a kid and stuff, but she's always complaining about how sexist it is that the boys get different costumes."

"Yes, that's a problem," Tigris says absentmindedly as she searches through the closet. "Okay, I think that's everything."

"So are we ready to go down?" I ask.

"It seems that way. I guess we'll be the first down then," Tigris says. She leads me back to the lobby, which links to the stage where the interviews take place. Beneath it is the garage where the tributes get ready for the parade. The horses are already lined up and ready to go, so we make our way to the chariot for District 4.

To say the wait is boring is an understatement. Sure, I have the bragging rights of being the first Tribute down there, but it's just not worth it. I pass the time by telling Tigris about District 4, and she tells me about the Capitol, and we make fun of some of the fashions (according to Tigris, if you're going to look a little weird you might as well go all out weird. I have to say I agree with her on this, no matter how stupid she looks). We must wait for hours, but still no Tributes show up. It gets to the point that we start stealing sugar cubes from the horses, which isn't very nice of us but we do it anyways. Eventually, the pair from 7 make an appearance in their ridiculous tree costumes, but that's it.

And then it happens. The Tributes start swarming in like a school of fish. Several of the mentors show up too. Eventually Mags, Marina, Ariel, Spook, and Elena join us. Mags and Ariel give us some last minute advice, Elena shoves us on the chariot, and Tigris wishes us good luck. We're confused at first, but then we notice District 1's chariot is already moving. I pop my remaining sugar cube in my mouth and wait for our chariot to start moving.

To say that the crowd loves us would be an understatement. As soon as they see us, they start screaming in delight. I'm not sure what the big deal is, but it's probably Marina. Someone even throws a bra at us. Disgusting, right? I mean, who does that? President Snow gives a speech, and the horses lead us to yet another garage, connected to the training center this time.

"You were brilliant!" Elena squeals. "I just wanted to grab you off that chariot and take you away!"

"You did well," Tigris purrs.

"Now we just have to worry about pedophiles," Marina jokingly whispers.

"Too late, we already have Elena," I laugh. Ariel and Tigris, who were standing close enough to Marina to hear her comment, try to conceal their laughter.

"For what?" Elena asks, causing my stylist and Marina's mentor to break out laughing.

"We need to get to our floor," Mags says, grinning at our immaturity.

We take the elevator, somehow getting stuck with District 7. The mentors, Blight Mason and Ivy Birch, actually make some kind of attempt to converse with us, while the Tributes just look at us jealously. Probably because we've trained.

"Blight?" Mags asks as we're about to exit the elevator. "Have you seen Angus recently? I was hoping you could give him a message."

"Sorry, I haven't. You'll have to talk to him yourself if it's that important," Blight says.

"I was afraid of that," Mags mumbles darkly as we leave.

"Who's Angus?" I ask.

"Just a District 10 victor," Ariel says. I still can't understand why talking to him would be such an issue, but I don't press the issue further. Tigris shows us to our rooms and leaves us to get changed. I'm somewhat glad about this, seeing how itchy my costume is. When I'm done I leave my room and sit down in one of the chairs silently, waiting for the others. Right now, the only one in the room is Mags, who's deep in conversation with someone on the phone.

"Finnick?" Mags asks. "Someone wants to speak with you?"

I give her a confused look, but take the phone from her. "Hello?"

"Hey dork, I saw the parade."

"Attina?" I laugh. "How are you calling me?"

"I'm using the phone from that empty house in Victor's Village. How else?"

"Right and you're calling me why?"

"I think Triton's on to us."

"Tell me something I don't know. Did you see how angry he was?"

"Right. Casper says… Oh for crying out loud! Anastasia Marissa Cresta, stop that right now!"

I try not to laugh.

"As I was saying before Annie so rudely interrupted me, Caspian thinks he'll try to sabotage your time in the arena or something. I'd be careful if I were you."

"What could he possibly do to me?" I ask. My eyes trail over to the hallway, where Marina is emerging from. "Is Caspian there? I think Marina might want to talk to him."

"Oh, yeah, I'll go get him."

I get Marina's attention and hand her the phone. I walk away so I can't eavesdrop on the conversation, probably because it would be too painful to hear. I mean, one of us or the other is going to die, and it'll be hard on Caspian either way. It's hard to even look at Marina without thinking about it.

Needless to say, I skip dinner that night.

…..

I'll try to update my newest story tomorrow, but no promises.

Quote of the day!

"What's the similarities between Justin Beiber and a skunk? They both stink. What's the difference? The skunk can sing." –Me

If you actually like Justin Beiber, just replace his name with a different singer you hate.

May the odds be ever in your favor,

Spectrobes Princess