The scores are here! Most of these are what the original creator of the tribute has submitted, but a few I adapted due to story line development, and just how I had written them. This chapter is a bit jumpy in terms of POV, it starts off through Florence's eyes, just because I felt like it, but then after each tributes score is revealed, there is a little two line section on their reactions. Enjoy!
Scores
The last time they had been in this room they had all sat together on the long banquet table. They had been laughing and joking and drinking until long into the night. And now, despite all the tributes still sitting together, there were gaps in between them, they sat in little groups, most not daring to interact with one another. There was no laughing or talking, but there was drinking, that was a constant. Florence was shocked at how quickly things had all changed and the gentle hum of voices that echoed throughout the room wasn't the cheerful kind. It was filled with worry and concern and desperation. When they had been called down to the meeting hall shortly after dinner, Florence had known immediately what it was for. In previous years, the scores had been revealed when the tributes were alone with their district partners, but not this year, this wasn't a normal year. If it was, Florence would not have been sitting opposite a seventy year old man, or down the line from a toddler. The Capitol knew they had arrived as a strong bunch, and that they needed to be broken up. They had been successful so far, the announcement of private training and the emergence of alliance groups had driven ridges in between the tributes, ridges Florence was sure would only deepen as their scores were announced.
Along with Flynt, Lilac and Lya, Florence had been enjoying a picnic on the roof to celebrate Lilac's birthday. But that had now ended, and they sat holding hands, in the nearest chairs to the projected screen, that lit up as Adonia Flickerman, the granddaughter of the legendary Ceaser and this year's Games presenter walked into view. The makeshift badge that Florence had constructed to Lilac still stayed pin to her chest, and she watched as the girl fiddled with it. Their eyes met briefly, and Florence sent her an uneasy smile.
"Ladies and Gentlemen of Panem, the moment you have all been waiting for, the Private Session Scores. You felt sorry for them in the reaping, and fell in love with them in the Chariot Rides, but now it is time to see if your favourite tribute has what it takes to win the Games." Adonia's voice filled the room, and the atmosphere became more tense than it already was, if that was possible. Florence watched as Lana and Aila joined hands, a move that Lilac and Flynt quickly copied. Feeling suddenly alone, Florence reached out, taking Lya's hand in her own, receiving a slight squeeze from the girl.
"We'll cut straight to it." Adonia wore a purple suit, much like the one her grandfather supported in many of his appearances, her hair fastened back into a tight bun atop her head. She couldn't have been much over twenty, and Florence felt weirdly sorry for the girl, she had been born into a family of Games loving entertainers, there was no way she was ever going to be anything other than a host. "District One, Luster with a score of three, and Hypatia with a score of nine."
Hypatia did her best not to look bothered, but inside her heart was racing. She had been so sure that she had messed it all up. She looked up from her hands that twisted in front of her, to see Ezra had raised his palm in a high five. Hypatia slapped it, and for the first time that she had been there, allowed herself to display a genuine smile.
Luster was thoroughly disappointed in himself. A three? That was pathetic even by his standards. Of course he had known his physical skills were rather dismal, but had let himself hope that his intelligence would have helped him, apparently not. That was just great.
"From District Two we have Locke with a score of seven, and his daughter Salome getting a 12." Adonia glanced back down at her card, to check what she was seeing was right. That would be embarrassing, wouldn't it? The presenter of an awards show reading out the wrong name for the winner of the top prize, she wouldn't be so stupid as to let that happen. "Yes, really, a 12!" She laughed in surprise. "Well that will be one awkward meal tonight…"
Salome couldn't meet her dad's eye. Any normal parent would be jumping for joy at this result for their child, but then again, Locke was not a normal parent. He had been the one to train her, to push her to do well and she had beaten him by a mile. She knew she should feel proud of herself, but all she felt was disappointment that she had humiliated her dad in such a way.
"What the hell did you do, Salome?" Locke asked, standing up. If he survived this, which he knew he never would, Locke had realised he had just lost his job. There was no way the Academy would keep on a trainer that couldn't score more than a seven, even if he was a Hunger Games victor.
"I took down a Peacekeeper."
"You what?" Locke stepped back, startled. "You took down a Peacekeeper. Of course you bloody did." He pulled his daughter to her feet, wrapping his arms around her waist and spinning her around, laughing with glee.
"Diva from District Three scored a six," Adonia was not waiting for the display of affection between the Two pair to be over, and so they quickly settled back into their seats, Salome oblivious to the stern look Jordan was angling in her direction. "And her partner Alfred scored a seven."
"Nicely played Alfred, you kept your skills hidden from us!" Diva laughed, ecstatic that both her and Alfred had achieved satisfactory scores. All they needed now was for Newton to replicate that and they would be an unstoppable team. Newton and Alfred were obviously the brains, they would think of ways to survive that Diva wouldn't even consider. And she could be the strength. Although she didn't want to, Diva knew that she could kill if she put her mind to it, and despite their pact to not murder, they all knew that if they were put in a situation where it was their only option, they would.
"Nautilus and Dory from District Four scored a five and a six respectively." Adonia announced. She had the same power as Caesar, to captivate an audience and have them hang off her every word. The tributes were barely connecting their names and their scores to themselves, too focused on the way Adonia commanded the Capitol to properly think about what this meant for them.
Dory was so proud of herself. She knew she was trained and had the ability to go far, but to the Capitol standard, she was nothing. To know at her young age she was scoring the same as the likes of Diva and Locke made her believe that her chances of victory were higher than she had thought. Nautilus didn't say a word, but Dory could tell that he was proud of both her score and his own. In all honesty, Dory hadn't seen him doing that well, in training especially he had been frantic and uncalculated, but maybe the man had some secrets he just wasn't getting on.
Nautilus reached across the divide between the chairs, taking Dory's hand in his own. He winked at her as she smiled back. "Oh Dory, you do make my heart sing." He spoke plainly, vowing to himself that he would do anything and everything to make sure that Dory was the one that went home, even the unthinkable.
"From District Five, we have Newton with a four and Dina with a seven." The presenter pushed back a strand of hair that had fallen loose from her updo, completely oblivious to the effect her words were having on the tributes.
Newton began to rock backwards and forwards, becoming more frantic and worried by the second. He was officially the weak link in the alliance. What if the District Three pair dropped him? It was too late now to side with anyone else, it would look fake and forced. He really was going to be in this alone, his worst nightmare imaginable.
Dina, who was sitting next to him despite their breakdown in alliance, and who happened to be feeling quietly confident about her chances, reached her hand out tentatively to bring Newton to a stop. "Hey," She whispered. "I know what you're thinking, and they're not the type of people to do that. Look up." Dina spoke softly, angling Newton's head to where Alfred and Dina were sitting across the table. They shot him reassuring smiles, holding their thumbs up, and Newton began to feel better. "And whatever happens with them, you're still my District partner, I won't let anything happen to you."
"District Six," Adonia continued, not taking a break between her revelations. "Saw Ezra gain a score of six and Lya get a seven."
Florence slapped her hand on Lya's back, noticing how the girl failed to hide the grin on her face. Lya had known she wouldn't get a terrible score, she was expecting maybe a five, but this was beyond what she thought was achievable. Her apparent skill added to her disability made her sure she would get at least a few sponsors, even if she had to play up to the cameras.
Hypatia looked disappointed at Ezra's score, despite the happiness he felt in getting to the halfway mark. That didn't matter though, it didn't matter what the Capitol or even the other tributes thought of him. Ezra had obtained a reasonable score just by healing, by helping instead of destroying, proving to himself, if not to others, that the Hunger Games didn't have to be all about destruction.
"Flynt, from District Seven scored a seven, and Florence a six."
Florence nearly missed her score by the cheer that Flynt let out. He had been so nervous about this, he hadn't been thinking straight the whole night, but he had done it, he had proven himself, and for that he was so incredibly proud. He turned to Lilac and their lips met, so content in the moment but knowing it the euphoria would not last forever.
Florence, on the other hand, was feeling dejected. A six wasn't bad at all, it was in fact exactly as she had been expecting. But she was just praying that by some miracle the Capitol had seen what she was capable of, even if she hadn't displayed it. No such thing happened, of course, and Florence was left feeling as though her chances in the Games were slowly slipping away.
"District Eight's Arbor scored an eight, and Cassia a five." Adonia continued, nodding her head in approval at Arbor's score. He was a firm favourite of her's and this cemented the fact that she was supporting the right person. She had a lot of money backing one of the Eight pair winning.
"I am never going to hear the end of you beating me, am I?" Cassia giggled, over the moon that her boyfriend and ally had done so well. She smiled as they kissed, and for the first time believed that one of them may actually make it home. Whether District Eight was a place she wanted to be if Arbor wasn't there was a different matter.
"From District Nine, we have Doug with a five and Lana with an…" She paused, wiping over the card in front of her to make sure that was actually written there, not some sort of practical joke. Nope, it was real. "An eight and a half. That's an unusual score." Adonia changed her confusion into a laugh. "I guess that's something we'll have to ask her about at the interviews tomorrow!"
That bastard Head Gamemaker, Lana laughed shaking her head. She wasn't sure exactly what he was playing at, but somehow Lana knew that it wasn't spiteful. He was showing her something, maybe that he had power, power to control and shape what happened to her, to give her an edge. Perhaps it was spiteful then, manipulating her to keep her quiet, yet he was still the man that had brought Doug his uncle. He was strange, and whilst Lana knew she would never get the chance to talk to him, all she wanted was to find out his motives.
Doug's score was something we owed to Salome. Without her push to get Locke to train him, he doubted he would have achieved more than a three. He looked across to where the father and daughter sat, Salome still celebrating off the back of getting a twelve, and he mouthed a quick thank you in their direction, before turning back to the TV screen.
"The District Ten pair, Ronin and Vivian gained a six and a two respectively." The announcer winced as she read out Vivian's score. Of course Adonia had known the toddler would never achieve anything outstanding, but it still sent a wave of pain through her body to know that this child's fate was sealed.
Vivian wasn't exactly sure what this all meant but judging by the way the other tributes celebrated when their names were followed by a six or a seven, she knew two couldn't be good. She attempted to find Luster in the crowd of people across the table, but instead her eyes rested on Ronin, the only person she knew she could unconditionally trust. He gave her a smile, but not the normal, confident, loving Ronin smile. It was sad, but whether or not it was for her or himself, she wasn't quite sure.
Ronin needed Vivian to be safe, especially now he knew for sure that she didn't have any secret hidden talents that would allow her to survive alone. But if he swooped in now, he might destroy his own alliance, and then Ezra's blood would be on his hands. He didn't trust Hypatia at all, and if Ezra died because he walked out, he would never forgive himself. And then, if Vivian died, Ronin would be riddled with guilt as well. It was a moral dilemma, and not one he thought he would be facing.
"Penultimately, we have D'ante from District Eleven scoring a four, and his District partner Aila scoring a nine." Adonia nodded her head in approval. It was nice to see people from the periphery Districts doing well. The landscape of the careers was changing, District Twp hadn't had a victor in almost twenty years, if they didn't achieve one this year, there was a high chance they would lose their status to Five, a District that had slowly been chaneling more money and resources into training their tributes. Volunteers in Five were becoming much more common, and with the intel Adonia had, she wouldn't be surprised if they became one of the career Districts within the next few years.
"Wow, I'm half a point better than you." Aila joked, practically glowing as she bumped her shoulder against Lana's. Her little rebellion had paid off, although Aila was sure that at some point it would come back to bite her. Everyone had noticed the sudden dulling of Jordan's revolutionary spark, and also how it had coincided with his sudden limp and the bump on his face. She just hoped that if from now on she kept her head down, she could avoid a similar fate.
Despite not even being half as good as Aila, D'ante was still proud of himself. He hadn't come absolutely last, and whilst he knew he shouldn't be reveling in the fact that an old man and a child were below him, he just couldn't help it. Nautilus gave him a reassuring wink, and Aila threw her hands across his shoulders, their little alliance all proud of one another, and closer than ever before.
"What an eventful reveal this has all been, but now we are onto the final scores. For District Twelve, we have Jordan with a ten and Lilac with a seven." Adonia discarded the cards she had been reading from, but was quickly handed another one, her eyes widening as she scanned its contents.
Lilac kissed Flynt in the surprise of obtaining such a high mark, as Florence and Lya hid their faces in fake disgust. "We all did well." Lilac giggled, letting out a breath she didn't know she had been holding, more nervous about the whole thing than she had let on.
Jordan looked around as the other tributes celebrated or complained to one another. Everyone had someone, even if they weren't in an alliance, and for the first time, he thought that maybe he had made a mistake going it alone.
"You did good, Jordan." Salome's voice broke out from the other's, the girl now standing behind him. He had been too lost in thought to notice her approaching. "My dad doesn't exactly know I'm about to ask you this, but if you wanted to join us, you could." Salome shrugged.
"Sorry, kid. The offer is nice, but I wouldn't exactly want to upset your old man, he doesn't look like the forgiving type." Jordan nodded in Locke's direction. No matter how much he told himself to accept Salome's olive branch, he never could. It was so much easier relying on no one, and having no one rely on him. "But that doesn't mean I haven't got you back."
"And so, from lowest score to highest score we have: Vivian, Luster, D'ante, Newton, Cassia, Doug, Nautilus, Dory, Florence, Ronin, Ezra, Diva, Alfred, Lilac, Dina, Lya, Flynt, Locke, Arbor, Lana, Aila, Hypatia, Jordan and Salome." Adonia let out a long breath as she finished the list, her eyes widening as she read down on the cue card in front of her. Normally the scores were over by now, but the young woman had another surprise to reveal to Panem and the tributes, one that came as a shock even to herself. "As this year is a Quarter Quell, and the Districts are reminded that every effort must be made to atone for their sins, the tributes will be lined up at the Cornucopia, instead of in a circle, ranked by their Private Sessions scores. The person with the lowest score will be closest to the Cornucopia, and those with the highest, the furthest away." She paused for a second, making sure what she was reading was correct. "And to remind the tributes that death is an inevitability of the Hunger Games, and something necessary to make up for the Capitol lives lost during the Second Rebellion, every time a tribute kills, they will be rewarded with a pack of food and water, and the thing they currently need most to survive. "
This could be a Game changer, Jordan thought to himself. He was second furthest away, and the pride he felt in obtaining such a good score was beginning to falter. By the time he reached the centre, all the good weapons would be gone, and to add to that, he didn't have an alliance that would be able to secure him the stuff he needed before he reached there. He had another option, though. He would be right at the end, he could just run, and worry about finding food and weapons at a later time. Most of these tributes didn't seem like the killing type, he could easily hide out and raid a camp when the time was right. Whilst stealing had been Jordan's main way of obtaining food back in DIstrict Twelve, he was ready for that all to be over now. He wanted to fight and win, running had never been an option, he would just have to find a way to make it work.
They were being very clever this year, Alfred thought to himself. They knew that in the bloodbath the older tributes would be slaughtered in an instant, and it would become just any normal Games. With them closer to the centre, they had a better chance. What was even smarter was their second twist. Alfred knew that he and a majority of the other tributes had decided against killing, and there was no excitement there. The Capitol were testing them, seeing how desperate they had to be before they took another life. It was cruel, but Alfred couldn't deny that if he was a viewer, he would be watching intently. The human brain fascinated him. What tipped them over the edge, made them kill? How did desperation fuel them? It was sad, Alfred realised, that he would never get to see that. He just wondered how desperate he would have to become to kill someone and that was not a possibility he wanted to even consider.
"That's all tonight Panem, join us tomorrow evening at 7pm for the tribute interviews, and your last view of this year's batch before the Games begin. Happy Hunger Games, and may the odds be ever in your favour."
There we have it, the second section of this SYOT (the training) is officially over, now it's time to move on to the pre-games preparation, in which we will have the interviews and the tributes party. I'm trying to write chapters in advance so I have a backlog of things to post when I really have to get started on the essays, but I keep getting carried away and writing really long chapters... such as this one which was meant to be 1000 words but ended up at way over 3000. I mean, at least it gives you something to do.
You're reviews are always so lovely, and I appreciate every single person that has ever decided to read this. I hope you are all safe and well and positive, and always feel free to PM me if you ever need anything.
Until next time,
Alice xxx