I am so, so, so sorry it's taken so long to update. You're all a bunch of troopers for sticking with me and this story, and I love you all for it. The really busy time is over, so my updating should be pretty regular now. Enjoy! Disclaimer: I do not own The Hunger Games. District 5: Maurice Gelle POV My name rings out over the speakers, loud and clear, unlike the ones at home. I swallow and turn to smile at Adelaide. "Good luck," I say. "You'll be fine," Adelaide says warmly, reading my mind. But despite what she says, I know I don't have any skills. I could probably make it a while by keeping my head down and hiding, stealing the occasional morsel of food, staying sane by staying with Adelaide. But I have to cross this hurdle first. I go into the training room, not very sure of myself at all. I see the fire starting station and walk steadily toward it. I pile materials in the way the instructor taught us and start a steady flame. I decide that is the best I can do for my score. Viztron Lightkeeper POV "I'm Viztron. I'll be fighting hand to hand combat today," I said, loudly and clearly, trying to interest the gamemakers even slightly. They send a heavily armored man down to fight me. We battle for a long time, rotating between offense and defense. I let down my guard for a second to make the final strike to win and the man cuts me in the arm. Shocked, I look down at the blood streaming from my wound onto the ground. I quickly change gears and knock the man to the ground, his knife flying from his hand. "Dumb Capitol," I mutter. "Excuse me," Warden says from above me. I look up, worried that he heard what I said and glad that he heard what I said. A small thought runs through my mind and I consider running my knife through him. But he's still standing in the safety of the forcefield, just much closer to the edge. "Yvette will show you to the first aid section for your arm," Warden continues. I think about refusing, to show how strong I am. Surely my score will be lower because of this slip up. I shake off the thought. I'm confessing my hatred for the Capitol in my interviews somehow, I know that. So it's pointless to care about my training score. They'll kill me eventually. And I realize I'm in no fit condition to refuse. My arm is bleeding steadily and it will be best to go to the infirmary. The woman called Yvette leads me down the hallway. She seems glad for an excuse to leave the training center. "Last year wasn't nearly so bad. Only twenty four tributes, you know? But now we're already at twenty six, and we're not even halfway done!" Yvette trills. When we get to the infirmary, a relatively normal looking man examines my arm. He shoots something into it with a syringe, and stitches it up. I hadn't realized how lucky I was, and I'm surprised at how willing they are to heal me. I guess I enthralled them with my spunk when the man struck me. Maybe a little spite will actually get me through these Games. But no. They won't let me win. William Sungen POV In the training center, I walk over to the pattern station. I'm not much good at anything, so maybe I'll come up with a random talent for patterns. I try this and prove myself wrong. I am dismissed quickly by the gamemakers. Adelaide Turner POV I'm surprised when they call my name. It hasn't been but three minutes since William went into the training room. I guess I should consider myself lucky that it'll be over soon. I do mostly crafty things, like fishhooks, fires, and camouflage, but I feel like I won't be a complete failure. Rachel Ellis POV I stare at the ground from incredible heights. I've been climbing my whole life, but there aren't trees even close to this high in District 5. The gamemakers look bored, but I don't care. Just this last time, I'm enjoying myself. And it's an amazing feeling. October Smeshle POV When I'm in the training room, the gamemakers seem far too bored, so I decide to use my session as a sort of conditioning time. I pick up the weights and toss them around, surprisingly myself with the size of some of them. I notice one gamemaker on the side looking impressed, and I feel relieved that I'll get a decent score. District 6 Ryder Bee POV I give the gamemakers a little presentation on plants. They seem pretty bored, but at least I'll know what I'm doing in the Games. Miles Roderick POV I look around for inspiration. I need something to show the gamemakers! But nothing I see will show any skill I have. So I go to the archery station and sloppily shoot some arrows. Maybe I can get them to underestimate me. Jason Benz POV I pin the large man on the ground, surprised at my strength. I am good at wrestling but not nearly this good. Maybe the dire situation I'm in has increased my adrenaline and fighting skills enough to get me a high score. Crystal Nowther POV Though I'm a little worried going into the training room, I know I won't get a high score, so I just climb the courses they have hung around. I've been dying to, but my mentor said it was better not to show my only skill, or the other tributes would know how to bring me down easily. The courses are thrilling. Because they are as big as the whole room, I don't run out of places to climb. When I eventually come down, the gamemakers are no longer paying attention. Oh well. Galia Kern POV I throw around some knives and try the bow and arrow. The gamemakers look too bored to pay any attention at all. Jennifer Ueni POV The gamemakers are feasting on foods I've never even seen before. They're telling stories of lavish parties they've been to that only the most prestigious are invited to. One older gentleman is even dozing off in the corner. But if I know one thing they aren't doing, it's paying attention to me. I don't have many skills, but I was hoping to win them over. I see now that's impossible as they have no care in the world of what I have to show them. I'm the halfway point through the tributes! They aren't even close to done, yet they act as if they are at a bar days after the Hunger Games have ended, celebrating another successful year. And I can't stand it. I sit on the floor and wait until one by one, they notice me. "You may begin," one says in a firm voice. "Thank you, but I don't wish to show you anything," I say calmly. "Then stop wasting our time!" one says with exasperation. "Your job is to watch and judge me on my skills. You have failed. And I assure you that if I ever come face to face with the president, she will been told of this failure. And I strongly doubt she'll just forget about it." I walk out of the room and feel the chilling effect I've left behind. It surprises me. I've never done anything like it before. But I know one thing. Those people will make sure I never leave that arena. District 7 Tree Branch POV When my name is called, I stand and look back a couple rows at Lily. She smiles and gives me a reassuring nod. I make the mistake of looking at Maple who avoids eye contact but shoots death glares at the wall. So I'm not as confident as I should be as I walk into the training room. Nevertheless, I pull myself together to show my skills. I pick up an axe and smile at how comfortable it feels in my hand. I immediately chop off the head of a dummy and hurl the axe across the room into a target. I continue doing this until the gamemakers dismiss me. Asher Ark POV I sit at the fire making station, desperately trying to start a flame. The gamemakers stare dumbly at me. I finally start a stream of smoke, and the gamemakers dismiss me. Ember Diriton POV I ask for a trainer to fight in my private session. As I battle him intensely, I think about how he landed this job. Was he proud? Did he stand with his chin held especially high, because being a trainer for the Hunger Games is so brilliantly honorable? I conclude these thoughts as I pin him on the floor. Maple Seed POV I walk into the training room with my shoulders set back, ready to make an impression. Tree went in a few people back, looking at that District 11 girl. Who'd want to ally with someone so hopeless and weak? I grab an axe from the rack and hurl it across the mat to a target. The blade pokes through the other side. I get another and throw it at the dummy near me who's face looks like Maple's. Or at least as close as a dummy could get. The dummy's head falls off and hits the floor with a dull thud. Jade Stone POV I throw around daggers and knives, changing my target every other throw to keep the gamemakers awake. At least a little. Runa Araltan POV I play around with the pattern machine during my private session. I feel the gamemakers staring at my ponytail as I try to remember the complex pattern. The machine gives me a slight shock as I hit the wrong button. District 8 Plaid Cotton POV I hold the cloth dummy in my arms and tear it apart, leaving gashes in places and using some supplies from the camouflage station to represent blood and infection. I taste bile in my throat and swallow, taking a deep breath. This is not a real person, I'm not hurting a real person, I think, trying to calm myself down. It's not that I'm grossed out or anything. I heal people all the time back at home. It's just the idea of hurting someone, putting them this close to disrepair, that bothers me. I guess that's not the best mindset for someone going into the Hunger Games. As I cut one less gash, putting the dummy in critical condition, I put down my weapon and pick up the medical supplies. Then suddenly, I'm in my element. I disinfect the wounds and sew up the deeper cuts. I use supplies that are easier to find, not expensive medicines that I'll rarely, if ever, get ahold of in the arena. I look up over the newly healthy dummy, and I see a couple gamemakers watching me intently. "You may go," one says. I hope that I've done enough. Orion Mage POV I head straight to the axe station when I enter the training room. I've thought this out carefully. I'm better with knives and daggers, but at this point, the gamemakers will pay little attention to me either way. I've got to be a bit more flexible with the type of weapon I get in the arena. I'm already pretty good with an axe, so this will just be more practice. I pick one up and sling it at the target. It hits the circle around the bulls-eye. Not bad. I can work with that. I keep using the axes to hit the targets until the gamemakers let me leave. Deimos Text Turner POV When my name is called, I drawn in a shaky breath. I pick up my walking stick with sweaty hands and feel my way into the training room. The busy hum of many preoccupied gamemakers reaches my ears. "Please put down the walking stick. You may not use it in this session," one calls out. "I'm blind. I need it," I say. "Will it be your district token?" the same voice asks. "No. I thought it would be given to me in the Games," I say, almost pleadingly. "You better hope you have generous sponsors. For now, put it down and begin." I put down my stick, then I stay still. There is nothing I can do. Too many weapons are scattered around this room. I'll be better off with a low score then with an injury. But I think about what the man said. I won't survive without the walking stick. But then again, I can always ask Plaid to find me a stick. There'll surely be a tree of some sort. So instead of risking injury, I sit down and wait. I hear fury in the voice I recognize as Head Gamemaker Warden. "You may go." I pick up my walking stick and exit. Evie Littleton POV I point out plants to the gamemakers, explaining what each does to a person (what nutrients it supplies or how it hurts people if it's poisonous). They seem incredibly bored. Denim Siltey POV I lift a weight that seems much too heavy for me. Beads of sweat form on my forehead as I toss it across the room. The gamemakers seem impressed though, which makes me relieved. Jenna Azure POV I pick up a dummy and show the gamemakers the best places to cut someone. If they're holding you down, cut this part for the best results, that kind of thing. I can tell they're all bored, but I think they see my potential. Or at least, I hope they do.