CHAPTER XXIII. THE PARTY
"Life is short, wear your party pants."
-Loretta LaRoche
SAPPHIRA STARLETT (18) - VICTOR OF THE 25TH HUNGER GAMES - DISTRICT 1 MENTOR
Sapphira was elated that the Capitol decided to have a celebration after the first night of training as they did the year before since it was one of the many highlights of her Hunger Games experience. She thought the party would be a one-time event, just due to the nature of the Quell, so when she heard the news she'd be blessed with another opportunity to party, she couldn't help but jump up and down in circles. Last year's party was fairly interesting, and the first time she met Coriolanus Snow, who wildly enough is the president now. She practiced the dance moves she learned in cotillion with her District Partner Brycen, and so many Capitolites had their eyes on them. It was her first taste of true stardom in the Capitol, and it certainly got her hooked.
"You take so long to get ready," Anaïs pouted, standing next to Sapphira in the bathroom of their hotel room, "I want to go to the party!"
Anaïs looked absolutely dashing with her emerald colored suit which highlighted her short brown hair beautifully, and Sapphira was glad her own dress matched the shade of her girlfriend's suit almost exactly.
"Give me three more minutes," Sapphira was in the middle of curling her eyelashes so she could apply mascara, "Can you go see if Eros and Fila are ready? They should be downstairs."
"Sure thing!" Anaïs flashed a cheesy thumbs up then left the bathroom.
So far, Sapphira was delighted to see that her Tributes were getting along so nicely. Eros was a charming young man, despite the fact they were the same age, and even though she was bitter at first, Fila warmed up to Sapphira quite nicely. There was no denying that District 1 was once again a force to be reckoned with, exactly how I should be.
Sapphira took her time carefully coating her lashes with the black mascara since she knew she had to look perfect, though was that really hard for her? No. While last year's party was a chance for her to impress sponsors for her own Games, this year, she planned to talk to the Capitolites and tell them about all the promises she felt Eros and Fila showed, hopefully snagging them some good money. She glanced at herself in the mirror, her wine red lip and bronze eyeshadow staring right back at her. It truly was wild that just a year ago, she was like Fila and Eros, and probably freaking out about the good impression she had to make.
"Hello, dolls," Sapphira pranced down the elevator where she saw Fila and Eros talking to Anïas. They had left Razzie in the hotel room since partying really wasn't meant for little dogs.
"Greetings, Sapphira," Eros awkwardly curtsied, something he always did when greeting her, leading Fila to laugh.
Eros was wearing a red velvet suit with a somewhat unbuttoned black shirt underneath which perfectly highlighted his bright blue eyes. Fila on the other hand wore a silver romper and had her hair in a high ponytail. While their outfits weren't exactly matching, they were cohesive enough that it worked.
"How was training?" Sapphira tried to start a conversation with them.
"Not bad," Fila was having trouble with her heels as she approached Sapphira, "I don't think either of us are going to lead the Career Pack."
Fila seemed upset and Sapphira couldn't figure out why. She didn't lead her own Career Pack, and well she was the one who made it out alive. In hindsight, they never actually established a formal leader, but it worked well enough considering they made up almost the entirety of the Final 8. Ammo and Brycen's fight to assert their dominance was also pretty hilarious, which led to Brycen somehow getting killed by a thirteen year old, which was sad, but also kind of funny. Then Sapphira simply killed Ammo in his sleep and with that, she was the last Career standing.
"That's not an issue at all," Sapphira whispered in case any of the other Mentors or Careers were listening, "You can always take them out, or watch them take eachother out like I did."
"I just thought I'd be a leader," Fila sighed, "I don't want to be under somebody's control again."
"What do you mean?" Sapphira questioned the red-headed girl.
"I'll explain," Eros jumped in, "At home, Fila's parents were really bossy and cruel to her, so she thought that she wouldn't be under such structure when she got here, but the girl from 4, Lana, she's really strict."
Ah, rookie mistake. Everything was always more stressful in the Capitol, how did Fila not expect this. They were preparing for the fight of their lives after all.
"Well, I'll try to give you some advice Fila if you don't like structure," Sapphira bit her lip, carefully questioning her word choices, "If you want, you can try to have fun tonight at the party, there's an open bar and you won't need to worry about attracting sponsors as I can do that for you.
Sapphira couldn't help but feel bad for the girl. While she didn't have much structure growing up and was somewhat left to roam wild, she could see how it would be draining.
"Really?" Fila's eyes lit up with her bright smile, "I'd appreciate it!"
"Well I was planning on snagging the two of you sponsors anyways," Sapphira admitted, "District 1 ought to bring the title of Victor home two years in a row!"
Sapphira walked away from the Tributes then went over to Anaïs who was beaming at her from aside.
"You look absolutely gorgeous today," Anaïs leaned over to give Sapphira a kiss on the cheek, "Not that you don't every day."
Sapphira nodded and said thanks. As much as she was glad Anaïs was with her in the Capitol, her presence had become somewhat distracting at times, because she wanted to go shopping but Sapphira was rightfully hyper fixated on helping her Tributes win. It was the one thing that could make her even more of a star than she already was, and Sapphira was ready to reclaim the spotlight.
ALARICO DE ORO (18) - DISTRICT 9 MALE
Alarico had the slightest bit of nerves as he prepared to enter the ballroom for the party. The Parade, despite his lackluster costume, was a fairly easy situation since he didn't have to talk to anybody, but he knew the party was going to be oh so very different. People would have his eyes on him as he interacted with the other Tributes, deciding who to sponsor. It was the sort of moment that could either make or break Alarico's time in the Games, and he was worried it would be the latter. He starred in the mirror of the lounge outside the bathroom while he waited for his ally Challis to relieve himself, fidgeting with the hem of the golden polo shirt he'd been given to wear, debating whether or not he should wear it tucked or untucked.
"Don't tuck it in," Alarico turned around after hearing a voice that didn't sound like Challis or his other ally Edison.
"Pardon?" Alarico saw a somewhat muscular boy with dark skin and a buzzcut.
"I'm Pith," The boy smiled, "I just don't think you should tuck in your shirt. You look great otherwise though."
He walked through the longue and into the remainder of the bathroom.
"Thank you for the advice then," Alarico really didn't know what to say but he untucked his shirt so the Pith boy would feel like he was impactful.
"Who were you talking to?" Challis exited the bathroom, still wiping his hands with a paper towel.
"Just some Pith kid who told me to fix my shirt," Alarico laughed, walking towards the door, "Let's roll out! ¡Vamanos!"
The pair had decided they'd make their official entrance into the ballroom with Edison, but they couldn't find him even though they were searching the lobby far and wide.
"Sorry I'm late," Edison rushed to approach them right as they were about to enter the ballroom, "I was having a chat with my mentor."
"Everything okay?" Alarico remembered the conversation they had on the train that Edison told him about.
"It should be," Edison flashed an awkward smile, "At least I hope it will be."
"We won't mention it for the rest of the night then," Challis said, "Let's try to have some fun and mingle!"
The three linked arms before taking a deep breath and walking into the ballroom. Photographers started taking pictures of them, and Alarico tried his best to play it up for them, striking all sorts of silly poses. Edison and Challis did the same. The ballroom itself was phenomenal, though that was to be expected since everything in the Capitol was. The room was dimly lit with a blue light, and there was a giant buffet in the back of the room. It was jam packed with other Tributes as well as wealthy looking people Alarico could only assume were Capitol Natives. There were plenty of silver tables, and the number "26" was on display everywhere. In the center of the room, there was a giant dancefloor which oddly enough was completely empty.
"I know where we should go!" Alarico laughed, dragging the gang by the hands, "I think we should boogie."
"I've never danced before though," Edison looked distraught, unusual for him.
"I don't think anybody here has," Challis smiled following Alarico to the dance floor.
Once the three of them were on the floor, they began to panic. The loud electronic music was thumping over their thoughts and they had no idea how exactly they could dance in such a fashion that it would impress the Capitolites. Suddenly, Challis whipped out the first move, placing his left hand on his hip and pointing his right index finger diagonally.
"I think this is called a disco," Challis yelled over the music, continuing his dance steps.
Alarico and Edison followed him going side to side, Alarico even swaying his hips to the beat of the music. It was somewhat glorious.
"I'm going to try something," Alarico called out after a few minutes of doing Challis' move.
Alarico dropped to the ground and laid on the dancefloor moving his body up and down rhythmically.
"You look like a worm," Edison was in hysterics.
Alarico got up off the floor and started to take a look around him at what was happening. The trio were still the only people on the dancefloor, but suddenly people were staring at them, laughing and clapping in sync to their dance moves.
"Does anybody want to dance with me?" Alarico decided it was time for him to play up his sex appeal if he wanted to fully secure the fact that the evening was a success.
A tall older man raised his hand so Alarico approached him, wrapping his hand around his hip, "¡Hola señor!"
He led the man out onto the dancefloor while his friends watched, clapping as well. He used his other arm to grab the man's hand and started twirling him in circles. It was hard for Alarico though, since when he stared into the man's eyes, all he saw was Atticus. He knew Atticus had said that he should do whatever it takes to win, even if it meant being with other men, yet he was still so utterly guilty, feeling like he was the worst boyfriend ever. He had no idea why he was being so dramatic, since he was literally just dancing and that could have completely platonic implications, yet with ever step, Alarico felt worse and worse
"I'm sorry but I have to go," Alarico let go of the man's hand and ran away, back into the longue by the bathroom.
"What happened?" Challis had apparently ran after him, Edison following.
"It's just," Alarico did everything he could to prevent himself from crying, "Dancing with that man reminded me of my boyfriend and it made me miss him so much."
"I'd say I get it but I don't," Edison's shitty joke brought a bit of laughter to the room, "Just use this as motivation to go and win for him."
Win for Atticus. Fuck, that was what Alarico had to do. But could he do it without making himself so utterly uncomfortable.
MORGAN SPARROW (13) - DISTRICT 12 MALE
Morgan felt so utterly alone at the party. His District Partner Etta had said she didn't want to come, even though that wasn't an option, so she simply refused to talk to him the whole time, instead choosing to read some book in the corner of the room. How she could read despite the room being so dimly lit was a huge mystery but not one Morgan cared to know the answer about. Etta was in all honesty a drag afterall. She had been their entire first day of training, begging Morgan to study plants and practice weapons with her, despite the fact he'd already made up his mind on the train and was content in the fact he would not be her ally. Maybe he'd ally with other people, but Etta was far too persistent to be somebody he'd enjoy.
At the party, Morgan sat in a chair at a table by himself, fiddling with the spaghetti he had gotten from the buffet. He wanted to say he enjoyed it in all honesty, but he simply couldn't. Much like the rest of the food in the Capitol, it was giving Morgan a bit of a bellyache which made it hard for him to enjoy it. He knew it was supposed to be good food, hence why he felt guilty not fully appreciating it, but it was just far too rich for his digestive system that was far too poor.
"Excuse me," Morgan peaked his head up to see a girl with shoulder length hair and blue eyes, followed by an upset looking younger boy, "Do you mind if I sit with you?"
Morgan rolled his eyes. Of course these two strangers wanted to sit with him. He truly could never catch a break in the Capitol. First it was the trainride where Etta kept nudging him, then the Parade where his body was somewhat invaded, then training where Capitol employees kept asking him how he was doing, whenever Etta wasn't nudging him. He was stupidly sick of it, "Fine."
The girl sat down at the chair next to him, the boy taking her other side.
"Hi, I'm Piper from District 10 and this is my Partner, Alabastor," Surprisingly her voice was somewhat like sunshine.
"I'm Morgan," He groaned, oh so tired of introducing himself, "District 12."
"You seem young," Alabastor noticed, "Like me. I'm twelve. How old are you?"
"I turned thirteen in May," Morgan responded, somewhat dumbfounded that the boy who was way taller and bigger than him was in fact younger.
"Oh I'm so sorry you have to be here," Piper broke into their conversation, "I imagine it's hard for you being this young."
"It happened to my sister and she died." Morgan was blunt, cutting straight to the point, "That'll probably happen to me but I think I'll try fighting until then," he realized he forgot a major detail, "My mom's also dead but if I die, my dad can handle it."
Morgan found that being direct tended to help him in these situations. Piper would probably just walk away, somewhat in fear of his trauma, and then he'd be alone again. His sadness tended to rub people the wrong way, but Morgan just admired the fact he was deeply in touch with reality.
"I've been through hard things too," Alabastor said, "My mom is gone as well."
Morgan noticed that there sure were a lot of people with dead moms around here. Etta's mom died as well. He wondered if maybe having dead moms was the majority now.
"Is your mom dead," Morgan tried to make a joke to Piper.
"What? No!" She uncomfortably laughed.
"I was just curious because I've met a lot of people with dead moms here," Morgan looked away in embarrassment, "It's cool that your mom is still alive though."
"She's kind of mean in all honesty," Piper sighed, "But at least she's still alive."
"And at least I don't have two dead parents," Morgan decided to heighten Piper's statement.
"And at least I'm not dead," Alabastor declared before realizing that there was a likely chance that soon wouldn't be the case, "Yet."
"That was actually really funny," Morgan laughed, smiling at Alabastor, "Thank you for coming to talk to me."
"It's my pleasure," Piper grinned, her smile reminding Morgan of his mother's.
"Wait," They were about to leave when Morgan decided it would be good for him to ask the question that had been on his mind for the past few minutes or so, "Are you guys allies by any chance, and if so, could I maybe get in on that as well? It's just that you guys seem to be nice, positive people, and I'd like to try to help you in some way."
They looked at each other and started laughing.
"Of course you can," Alabastor formally accepted his offer, "You seem like you could be helpful too."
"I agree!" Piper smiled, giving Morgan a high five.
"Thank you so much, I won't let you down," Morgan gave Piper a hug before offering Alabastor a hug which he declined. Fine by Morgan, he knew some people simply weren't huggers.
For the rest of the night, Morgan was actually somewhat happy. Piper was a really nice person and she kept asking Morgan if he was okay or if he needed anything, making him feel so welcome and at home, very much appreciated in the land of strangers. Maybe it was just her utter kindness, or maybe it was something else, but Morgan couldn't help but see Piper as though she was his second mother.
MARCEL HEMLOCK (16) - DISTRICT 7 FEMALE
Although at first she didn't think it would be, the Capitol was totally Marcel's element. She was never a huge fan of glamour or anything fancy, but that didn't matter because some of the people she met were just like the people back at home. Diana, her Mentor was basically her kindred spirit and they got along so nicely on the train, it was hard for them to stop laughing about the similarities in their lives, and start planning for the arena, though they did do that eventually, once her Partner Palmer stopped disturbing their hard work. He was a weird man for sure, and though he didn't know it now, if he somehow won the Games, he'd likely be just as bad as the men Marcel worked for. He looked dead inside during the parade though, and that was VERY embarrassing, especially since Marcel was flirting it up, which definitely got her some attention from the Capitolites seeing as they were all over her at the party.
"Ma'am," As soon as Marcel entered the room a thin white man wearing a sleek suit gestured to her, "Would you like to sit with my friends and I?"
"My name is Marcel, not ma'am," Marcel scowled before changing into the sweet voice she used for men, "And I'd love to, sure!"
The man grabbed her hand, somewhat odd for Marcel since she liked making the first moves, and led him to the table with who she assumed were his friends. He introduced himself as Klein, and his friends were Arlingon, Elvis, Aster, and Tuscanny. To Marcel, they all looked pretty much the same. Thinning hairlines masked by comb overs and fancy suits to give the impression their youth was still with them, Marcel was used to seeing it all.
"So," One of the men, maybe Elvis, Marcel wasn't too sure grabbed her hand, "Tell us about your life back in 7."
Marcel was dumbfounded for a moment. Obviously she couldn't say that she exploits old lonely men for money since that was exactly what she was trying to do here, but she wasn't really sure what the proper answer was.
"I usually just go to school a lot," That was the first thing Marcel came up with despite barely stepping foot on her campus, "My parents died by the way."
It was almost uncomfortable how easily Marcel was able to bring up the fact that her parents had died, but to her, it was just a natural part of life, and she didn't see the need in masking it, especially when not doing so would only be beneficial.
"Oh, that's horrible," Maybe Elvis said, Marcel unsure whether or not the sympathy he seemed to be expressing was genuine or not, "I imagine it's hard without a father."
"Not really," Marcel laughed, "I normally just spend time with my friends so I wouldn't even see my parents if I had them."
"Tell us about your friends then," Klein, the original man asked, "I imagine you must have lots of them."
Marcel wasn't sure what the men wanted from her, but she was almost positive it was sex, since no normal elderly man would care about the social life of a sixteen year old who was subject to possibly die soon, but Marcel simply didn't want to have intercourse with these awful men, and Marcel never did something she didn't want to do, no matter what the outcome would be. Here, the outcome would likely be the promises of gifts in the arena, but Marcel didn't have sex for promises that may not be fufilled.
"Hey, come over here," A female voice hollered at Marcel, "It's really urgent."
Marcel had no idea what was going on so she continued to chat to the men, as much as she disliked it.
"Please come," The girl's voice once again called out, this time getting the attention of one of the men.
"I think somebody wants to talk to you," The man said, "Go over and talk to her and we'll be here when you're done. We promise."
Marcel got out of her seat to see a tall girl with tan hair waiting impatiently. She wanted to ask who she was, but the girl just grabbed Marcel's hand and ran over to a couch in the corner of the elegant ballroom.
"I'm so glad you're okay!" She said through short breaths of air, "I was so worried."
"I'm sorry, who are you?" Marcel furrowed her brow.
"Teresa from 8," The girl announced, "I overheard that you're Marcel from 7."
"Yeah, that's me," Marcel was still confused, "Why did you pull me away? I was having a nice conversation."
"Oh, I'm done being nice," Teresa raised her voice ever so slightly, "Those guys, they were trying to get you to have sex with them."
"Oh, I know," Marcel laughed, somewhat in disbelief this Teresa chick thought she was stupid. "I wasn't going to let them though, it was a fun little game."
"So you knew?" Teresa was dumbfounded
"Of course I knew," Marcel whispered, "Between you and me, at home, I spend time with old men, promising sex but consistantly leading them on so they pay me more and more, and I've done well with that."
"Oh really?" Teresa was intrigued, "A strong, empowered woman. I like the sound of that."
"Do you now?" Marcel inquired.
"Well I'm not as badass as you but let's just say, I put my husband in his place," Teresa let out a large cackle, "If you know what I mean."
"Of course I know what you mean," Marcel giggled, "Also, marriage? You're so brave. I could never."
"Oh he's a good boy," Teresa rolled her eyes, "I've trained him well."
"Then I'm so proud of you," Marcel patted Teresa on the back, "Thank you for talking to me. I have a feeling we're going to get along quite well."
"You know what?" Teresa smirked, "I was thinking the exact same thing."
BELLEROPHON "BELL" CRISTOS (18) - DISTRICT 2 MALE
The past two days had been nothing short of emotional exhaustion for Bell. He thought everything was fine and dandy when he Volunteered, and he had that sexy Moira chick to sit next to on the train, but Micah Fuckforge happened to also be there and his presence ruined the whole thing. It wasn't that Bell wanted to make advances on Moira right then and there, but he definitely didn't want to be lectured on how to be good in the arena by Schrodinger's Mentor.
The Parade was chill and fun though, and Bell loved that his costume already came with no shirt so he didn't need to strip on the chariot. He was pre-stripped! Training was less fun though and that was because of this bitch named Lana Lotus. At first, Bell thought she was fine as hell, and she had the tightest ass he'd ever seen. In fact, all the Careers were irredeemably hot. Kingston especially, but in the brief interactions he had with him, he could tell that guy was straighter than a strip pole. What a fucking shame. Anyways, back to Lana. Bell had never seen anything like her. While on one hand, she was dominating as hell and was kind of a vixen, she was also kind of bitchy, and Bell wanted to lead the Careers, yet Lana wouldn't let him. She did give him a hot and sexy kiss when they first met so that was pretty rad.
After training, which was total lightwork by the way, Bell was so pleased that he got to attend a party. Not just any party though, a party with potential sponsors. Parties were totally Bell's element so he was mad stoked when he saw that there was a dance floor.
"Hello, Capitol," Without missing a step, Bell effortlessly slid onto the floor, striking a pose in his leather suit in the center, "The party has arrived!"
The rich people around him stared at him with confusion, and Moira put her head in her palms. The other Careers had similar responses though Lana had a look of intrigue on her face. Bell ignored their confusion and threw his jacket at his allies, Fila, who was somewhat intoxicated, grabbed it and started screaming. Apparently Fila's yelling was contagious, because the noises she made triggered everyone else to start applause. Without hesitation, Bell ripped off his shirt and started making noises as though he was roaring like a tiger. The Capitolites loved it, yelling with even more enthusiasm than before.
"Can I join you?" Bell cocked his head to see Fila jumping up and down, "I'm ready to dance!"
Now, Fila was sexy, obviously, but she was kind of boring to Bell, so seeing her all excited to dance was definitely interesting. The audience eye'd Bell, waiting to see if he'd accept Fila's offer, and from the looks of it, it seemed he had no option besides saying yes.
"Come on over!" Bell called to her, his armpits beginning to sweat.
"Hold my drink," Fila handed her glass of whatever to a disgusted Eros and ran onto the dancefloor, lifting up her dress and twirling it.
Everyone who was watching was absolutely losing their shit, so Bell knew what he had to do. Fila slowly approached Bell and began stroking his abs with her gentle fingers. She reached up to kiss him, but Bell knew better than to kiss a drunk girl.
"Let's dance," Bell said instead, wrapping his arms around her and spinning her in circles.
"Weeeeeee!" Fila screamed with every rotation.
Once they were done spinning, Bell started to do another type of dance with Fila, the tango. Their hands were intertwined and everything was going okay when.
"Shit!" Bell looked over at Fila, in disgust at what he saw. Flat on the ground, Fila's vomit was in a white puddle on the dance floor.
Bell had no idea what to do about it, not wanting to ruin his reputation or Fila's. Fila looked at Bell with wide eyes, begging him to act as though what just happened didn't happen, but Bell was petrified.
"I think we've partied enough for now," He lifted up Fila and placed her down on a couch, something he thought seemed right.
The audience was disappointed, but they were still smiling and they went back to their food as though Fila's incident had never happened. Maybe that was because she happened to do a pretty good job matching her puke with the color of the dance floor.
"I'm sorry that happened," Bell was genuinely concerned.
He loved to party, obviously, but partying was horrible when his friends got hurt, and even though they had only known each other for a day, Bell considered Fila a friend.
"I think I drank too much," Fila sighed, hearing her stomach growl again, "No, I know I drank too much."
"Well, Eros told me you were trying to have fun for the night," Bell laughed, still watching Fila to make sure she wasn't about to puke again, "But maybe now you know that you shouldn't have that much to drink."
"I've never had alcohol before!" Fila yelled.
"Neither have I," Bell sighed, "And you're showing me why that's a good idea."
It was true. Bell had never touched alcohol or drugs or any of that shit. He simply didn't need it to have a good time.
"That's absolutely bonkers," Fila started slapping the couch in enthusiasm, "Do you think they have chocolate milk here, by the way?"
"I'll check for you," Bell got up off the sofa.
Besides that snafu, it was an overall good night. Bell and Fila shared a nice bunch of laughs, and a few glasses of chocolate milk, which was apparently a great remedy for drunkenness. It was normal, almost painfully so, and it reminded Bell how much he was going to miss normal.
This chapter was dedicated to Will (Ripple237) in honor of his 20th birthday. Will, you are like a brother to me and I appreciate you existing in my life. Have the best day ever.
Hey guys, thank you so much for reading Chapter 23! I sincerely hope you enjoyed it because it was a blast to write. It's been so fun seeing all these tributes interact with one another so far, and I promise, it's only going to get more enjoyable.
Have a great day,
Lindsay
Current Alliances:
Career Cult/Pack: Eros Fortuna (D1M), Fila Ollaris (D1F), Bellerophon "Bell" Cristos (D2M), Moira Mikkel (D2F), Kingston Havlock (D4M), Lana Lotus (D4F)
Academic Rivals: Clancy Dietrich (D5M), Ares Krishnan (D5F)
The Fraternity But Less Toxic: Edison Montparnasse (D3M), Challis Lam (D8M), Alarico de Oro (D9M)
Lone Wolves: Liana Taylor (D3F), Dephra Kirk (D11F)
Fuck Men: Marcel Hemlock (D7F), Teresa McClean (D8F)
Babysitting: Alabastor Contreras (D10M), Piper Sanderson (D10F), Morgan Barrow (D12M)
Unknown: Camber Yaw (D6A), Sperry Holster (D6F), Palmer Adams (D7M), Saffron "Saf" Aldeniz (D9F), Alabastor Contreras (D10M), Piper Sanderson (D10F), Pith Plastid (D11M), Etta Wiseman (D12F)