Amer Jones, District 10
The second day in the Training Centre has begun. I set off for the hand-to-hand station first thing. Luckily, I'm the only one here at the moment, so the attendant doesn't have to divide her attention.
I think hand-to-hand combat is the best thing to study here. Survival things—even if you know all of the naturally poisonous plants, the Capitol could hit you with a toxic strawberry mutt, and you'd be dead, anyway. Weapon stations—I'm not a Career, so I may never actually get a weapon. And… Weapons make it too easy to kill people.
I don't want to kill anyone. I… I'm not sure just what I want to do. I know I want to go home, to District 10—the best place in all of Panem!—and the twin brother I volunteered for, and Mom and Dad. But, if I'm just fighting for myself… There's no way I could justify killing someone.
So… I'll make some allies. Protect them like any hero would. Not just because I need a reason to kill—but I really do want to help some of these guys. Even if only one gets out alive…
I… I don't know. I don't want to be in this at all. But I have made up my mind. I'll make some allies and protect them.
…As long as I can, that is.
I continue at the hand-to-hand station for a good while, until another tribute appears and the attendant excuses herself to get him started.
I'm not going to get much of anything else done in this time—it's only about twenty minutes to lunch—so I decide to wander about the stations and observe the other tributes.
I first come across a survival stand, something involving proper cooking of meat, where two boys—from 7 and 12, I think—are already conversing like allies.
"Hey," I start, walking up next to them. They look up for a second in acknowledgement before getting back to their cooking.
So, how should I go about this? I want to try something tactful…
"You wanna be allies?"
They look back up briefly, and then exchange glances.
"No," replies the 7 after a moment, adjusting his glasses.
"Wha? Why not?"
"Whether you're strong or not, you're not going to be a match for the Careers," he starts quietly. "And neither will we. So our strategy is hiding. And that's not going to be easier with another member in the alliance."
"Oh… Okay…"
They turn back to their station, and, after a moment of hesitation, I leave.
I've walked across a few empty stations before some furious clanging draws my attention. Pinpointing its source, I head over to the rapier station, where a few other tributes have also been drawn.
Two blonde tributes—Igris from 5 and Fronce from 6, I think—are engaged in a swift exchange of jabs and blocks, their foils flashing rapidly as they spar. They continue their mad exchange of ringing clangs until suddenly, both rapier tips near their opponent's chests. Both poised centimetres away from the other tributes' hearts, the swords stay suspended as their temporary owners lock in place panting.
"So… This must mean we're evenly matched, non?" pants Fronce.
"No," Igris huffs. "This means you got lucky this time."
The attendant, meanwhile, stands stiffly to the side, acting like he's seen a ghost.
The two tributes finally lower their rapiers, while Igris checks the clock. "Oh, good. Lunchtime." He walks over to the attendant and holds his sword out for the man to take. "Thanks for letting us use those, huh?"
"Yeah…" The attendant takes the foil a bit fearfully before flashing his gaze back up at the 5. "And this… was your first time with a rapier?"
"That's correct." Igris nods his head at the approaching 6. "His, too."
"What?" comes out of my mouth immediately. I think I understand what the attendant was so freaked out about now.
So… These two are either going to be my allies or my enemies. Now, I wonder what the smart choice would be.
I walk up to make their acquaintance, but they're already striding past me and toward the buffet before I can get a word out.
"Uh—hey!" I start after them, but they still don't notice me.
Wait. If I ask to be allies after that, I'll just sound like a weakling trying to surround himself with people to protect him. And that's exactly the opposite of what I want.
Well…
I sigh and grab a plate.
Meghna Cinge, District 10
I stare down at my full plate. Fancy Capitol food is in little piles all over the ceramic, and I should be hungry after working hard at the training stands.
But I really don't have an appetite.
I want to go home. I miss my family, and I really miss my boyfriend... I can't stand to think that I might never see him again.
Okay, come on, Meghna. Don't get to thinking like that. You can make it home. Maybe...
I poke at my food with a fork, although I'm still far from eating any of it.
Well, if I want to win, I'll need some allies. I'm not very strong, so there's no way I could take on the Career pack by myself. But with whom would I ally? Like I said, I'm not that strong. I don't know how I could woo anyone over to my side.
"Hello!"
I look up as Laine from 7 sets her food down across from me.
"Hey," I greet, unable to match her enthusiasm. Not distracted by my own food, I end up watching Laine down a few baby carrots. She's humming something that seems kind of familiar.
I wonder where I've heard it before.
"Hey... Laine?" I start. Laine perks up. "What are you humming?"
"Oh, it's a song I learned in school when I was little." She clears her throat and restarts the song with words. "There's a hole in my bucket, dear Liza, dear Liza, there's a hole in my bucket, dear Liza, a hole!"
"Then mend it, dear Georgie," I find myself replying, "dear Georgie, dear Georgie, then mend it, dear Georgie, dear Georgie, mend it!"
Laine gasps and claps her hands in delight. "You know that song?"
"Yeah," I reply, starting to smile a bit. "Probably around the same age you did."
"Well, let's keep singing, then!" Laine exclaims. "Uh, where were we—Oh! With what shall I mend it, dear Liza, dear Liza, with what shall I mend it, dear Liza, with what?"
"With..." I trail off. "What...?"
"Straw," Laine whispers loudly.
"Oh, right!" I laugh a little bit. "With straw, dear Georgie, dear Georgie, dear Georgie, with straw, dear Georgie, dear Georgie, with straw!"
"But the straw is too long, dear Liza, dear Liza, but the straw is too long, dear Liza, too long!"
"Then cut it, dear Georgie, dear Georgie, dear Georgie, then cut it, dear Georgie, dear Georgie, cut it!"
"With what shall I cut it, dear Liza, dear Liza, with what shall I cut it, dear Liza, with what?"
"With a knife," I laugh—Georgie's not the smartest person, apparently, "dear Georgie, dear Georgie, dear Georgie, with a knife, dear Georgie, dear Georgie, a knife!"
"But the knife is too dull, dear Liza, dear Liza, but the knife is too dull, dear Liza, too dull!"
"Then whet it, dear Laine—" I cut off for a second, but shrug it off. "Dear Laine, dear Laine, then whet it, dear Laine, dear Laine, whet it!"
"With what shall I whet it, dear Meghna, dear Meghna, with what shall I whet it, dear Meghna, with what?"
"With a whet stone, dear Laine, dear Laine, dear Laine, with a whet stone, dear Laine, dear Laine, a stone!"
"But the stone is too dry, dear Meghna, dear Meghna, but the stone is too dry, dear Meghna, too dry!"
"Then wet it, dear Laine, dear Laine, dear Laine, then wet it, dear Laine, dear Laine, wet it!"
"With what shall I wet it, dear Meghna, dear Meghna, with what shall I wet it, dear Meghna, with what?"
"With water, dear Laine, dear Laine, dear Laine, with water, dear Laine, dear Laine, water!"
"With what shall I fetch it, dear Meghna, dear Meghna, with what shall I fetch it, dear Meghna, with what?"
"With a bucket, dear Laine, dear Laine, dear Laine, with a bucket, dear Laine, dear Laine, a bucket!"
The song pauses, and then we both sing the last stanza in unison.
"But there's a hole in my bucket, dear Liza, dear Liza, there's a hole in my bucket, dear Liza, a hole!" We hold the last note for a while before breaking off in laughter. I notice a few of the other tributes staring at us, but ignore them.
"Hey, Laine?"
"Yeah?"
"Do you want to be allies?"
"Sure!" she chirps without hesitation. She beams at me, and I smile back.
So, I've already had some fun and gotten an ally.
Maybe the Games won't be so bad after all.