Derwin Ciervo (17) D10M

I knew where I belonged in the Capitol. I was a Ten, and I was going to go where most Tens probably went at least once. The Training Center, of course, at first, but after that, I went where every Ten would feel at home: A zoo. It seemed like a cliche to me that I would go there, but it also made sense. Zoos were my heart of being. I lived off and with animals. Of course I would visit them when I was nearing my dying hours.

It took me a while to find a zoo. I figured there had to be one somewhere in the Training Center, what with all the other things there were, but I didn't know where. I checked around for guides or signs, but finally, I had to give up and ask some Capitolites. They had me sign a bunch of stuff and asked some questions, then told me what floor to go to and where. I didn't know how they could possibly know their way around so easily, but they had probably been there more than I had.

The zoo was nothing like I could have ever imagined. There were animals that looked like super tall horses, and huge cats with furry necks. There were stubby, stout four-legged animals with nasty teeth, and tons of fish. I thought about how few of the giant grey animals with trunks we could raise and live off of, and how many of the cute little squirrely things it would take to survive. There were such a variety of animals that I felt like I would never have time to see them all.

Despite all of the beautiful animals I found in the zoo, I was drawn towards the ones that reminded me of home. There was a section of more normal, domestic-looking animals that we were allowed to pet, and I wanted to pet the one that looked like a sheep with a long neck. The sign said its name was a "Llama," and I sure as heck didn't know how to pronounce that, but I knew it looked just like Choppy, my sheep. I hugged its soft neck, and it didn't fight me. It actually seemed to like it, letting me put my face in its fur. That let me relax, forgetting everything about the Games and thinking only about home.

At least, it did for a while. Until I heard someone yelling at another person, which scared both me and the llama. Being the curious person I was, I went over to investigate. What I saw amazed me. There was a boy, much smaller and younger than I was, that was riding one of the giant grey things. I couldn't fathom how he had gotten over the fence without notice, or how he had managed to climb onto something that would've given me, a regular horseback rider, problems, but I knew that he was causing a fuss. And I knew that I was in awe at his feat.

Orrick Jasso (14) D12M

Sometimes, I played harmless little pranks. They took days or weeks of planning, and they usually took support from other people. I wasn't rich enough to get many supplies, so I had to have a little help. Sometimes, I did things with less planning. An opportunity placed itself in front of me, and I found myself with no choice but to take it. I could recognize my bad judgment and impulsiveness, but I didn't really care about it. Especially when I saw a sign advertising what was supposedly the largest land animal in the world, and the Capitol was making it very clear that you weren't supposed to touch it.

So I did. It wasn't entirely impulsive, because it took a lot of planning to get around the guards and fences. I had to make a big fuss around the lions, to get the guards to care less about the elephants. Then I had to climb the wooden fence by wedging my fingers between the boards and hoisting myself up. I climbed the steel fence by wedging myself between that and the wooden fence and shimmying up, and then I was to the final stage of my trial: Actually getting on the elephant.

I knew that I looked nothing like the Capitol zookeepers, so I couldn't try and tame one that way. Instead, I went for a tactic that always worked for the dogs in Eleven. I leaned over as far as I felt I could safely, then pretended to throw food on the ground. One of the animals looked over at me, then it ignored me again. I remember the sign saying they were smart, but I didn't know they were that smart. So I opted for the hard way instead of the smart way. I shimmied around the fence and hopped onto the animal closest to me.

The elephant didn't seem to notice that I was on it. I figured it was because I was light compared to the giant beast. However, the zookeepers certainly did notice me. They started screaming at me to get down, telling me how much trouble I was in. I didn't really care. I was probably gonna die in a week. I would go out with a bang.

"Hey! He's with me. I'll handle him," I heard someone yell. I looked down to see another tribute, but he was pretending to be an adult.

"Yeah! He'll make sure I'm good," I yelled, jumping off the elephant. I landed horribly, probably spraining one of my ankles, but it was fun. Then I climbed out the way I climbed in, watching the boy seem amazed at what I had done.

We quickly left, power-walking out. We pretended it was because we had places to be, but we were just trying to maintain composure. "I don't do things like that! I can't believe I got involved. How'd you do that, though?" the boy asked me.

"It wasn't that hard. I distracted the guards, climbed the fences, and jumped from the fence to the elephant. I'm Orrick, by the way," I replied.

"Hi! I'm Derwin. Are you looking for allies?" I could tell right then that Derwin was kind of awkward, but I didn't care. He seemed cool, and I was in life for the fun of it.

"Of course I am! Join me and you'll be in for a wild ride."

Surprise! Two chapters in two days. We have one more alliance, the loners, and then interviews! We're getting close :D