So far, their mentors were nowhere to be found, instead, both Esinon and Fives sat in silence while Clover made his way about the train car, fussing over everything. Esinon stared at the silver platters full of food, and ornate fixtures covering the inside of the bullet train. Sure District four was one of the wealthier districts but since their parents died, and then Echo, Fives had had to pick up a few extra jobs just to keep their house. Esinon had to get a job on a fishing boat to chip in as well, to think that the capital was living in all of this wealth and sometimes she and Fives could barely make ends meet. She fiddled with the crystal around her neck, already starting to miss home. Everything was so unfamiliar… it was terrifying. She was torn from her thoughts as the car door whooshed open, and the victors walked in. Mags smiled at her, probably extremely proud that her prized pupil was competing in the Hunger Games this year.
"It's nice to see both of you," Obi-Wan said as he took a seat, Esinon sat up a little bit hoping to get even more information on how to win. On how to survive.
"Are you both excited?" Sapphire asked with a bright smile on her face. Both Fives and Esinon forced a nod,
"We're honored to be representing District four," Fives said after a moment, Mags smiled,
"Good, now I think you all know that when we arrive at the Capital, you'll go through to be processed. You'll be separated for a time," she explained, "Then the tribute parade will happen, it will take us about two days to get to the Capital so you'll have plenty of time to get comfortable on the train. In the meantime, I suggest you rewatch the reaping and size up your competition."
"It's quite the group this year," Sapphire said, "And remember, Districts will be putting forward their best tributes if they wish to win, but if they don't they may have sent their weakest. It's time to begin coming up with a strategy." both of the District four tributes nodded. "Come and find us if you need anything," the mentors gave them all nods before getting up and exiting the car. Fives grabbed the remote of the table and flicked on the TV and Augustan Blythe appeared on the screen with his bright green hair and glitter-encrusted suit, and Esinon was realizing that she was going to have to wear fancy outfits like that very soon. They looked itchy. Next to Augustan was the game maker, Yon Dooku.
"Do you think we can expect any surprises from this group this year? It is a very interesting group in my opinion," he said, Dooku nodded,
"Indeed it is, it's hard to tell from just a reaping but especially for the quarter quell."
"Now let's take a closer look at this reaping," the image of Augustan and Dooku became smaller in the corner of the screen while highlights of the reaping began to play. The first pair that appeared were holding hands and their arms were in the air in celebration. Two pale-skinned blond tributes, both dressed in the luxurious fashion of District one.
"District one, Xavier and Jade Grerum," Augustan said, "Twins?"
"Yes, they have been ones to watch. Nicknamed the nightshade twins at their academy, these two will definitely put on a show this year at the games." Dooku explained, both twins were pasty-skinned with heads of white hair. The boy had two scars over his right eye, and the girl had scars running down from her forehead over her eyes and down to her neck.
"Twenty bucks she's the brain and he's the brawn," Fives murmured, as Dooku and Augustan continued to discuss the District one tributes. Esinon nodded in agreement,
"If we get them separated, we could probably eliminate them."
"We'll probably have to ally with them for a little while though, technically we are part of the career pack," he replied, Esinon rolled her eyes.
"Or I'll throw a knife at them and eliminate them first," she grumbled, Fives shot her a look,
"We need to survive this and sticking with the career pack is the best way to do that," he replied, Esinon drew her legs up to her chest.
"Or it'll get us killed," Fives sat back, staring at her for a moment.
"We can… figure it out during training. Alright? We don't have to have a perfect strategy right now," She nodded, resting her chin on her knees. She continued to watch the replay of the reaping, the boy and girl from District two were a lot larger than she was, Esinon knew it would make them slower. She had the advantage of speed. She watched for any tributes that stuck out. The tributes from district seven were opposites, a giant boy and another pale-skinned, and thin girl. She looked sickly, and the thick layer of black eyeliner made her look like a raccoon.
District eight had a young boy, he was only a year younger than Esinon, and the girl was eighteen. She was tall and looked strong. She wasn't exactly sure how the girl had gotten that way, she would have expected it from district elven where the tributes were normally hulking from working long days in the fields, but district eight was textiles. All they did was sit in a factory every day. Even Esinon was stronger than the average because those fishing nets weren't light, both she and Fives had to work on fishing boats every day. A small gasp escaped her lips as the tributes from district nine appeared. An eighteen-year-old blond boy, and a twelve-year-old girl with long braids and vitiligo.
"And then we have Rex Jackson, and Shaeeah Lawquane," Dooku began,
"As in Cut Lawquane? The victor?" Augustan asked, Dooku nodded,
"Shaeeah is his adopted daughter, Cut married a poor woman in district nine after she was divorced from her previous husband." Esinon watched as Rex walked over to Shaeeah, embracing the terrified girl.
"A guy like that has to know she's not gonna make it," Fives murmured, "Kids like that just don't win the Hunger Games," Esinon shook her head,
"Poor thing, she doesn't deserve this," Fives nodded in agreement. The rest of the reaping was pretty uneventful but Esinon made note of the tributes from district eleven, both of them looked wicked strong and they were also a brother and sister pair. Steela and Saw Gherra. Esinon filed them under possible allies, but also people to watch out for. She was sure that if Saw set his mind to it, he could kill her. "I'm gonna go lay down for a little while,"
"Ok," Fives said, "I'll come check on you in a little while." She nodded before starting to make her way through the train cars. She finally found her way to her quarters, they were far more lavish than anything she'd seen in District four. Satin pillowcases, silver lighting fixtures, large vanity with mountains of makeup and skin care products, and a bed that was as big as her parents' one when they were still alive. Sometimes she wondered what it was like to live in the Capital, people still thought it was a game, betting on their favorite tribute like it was a horse race. She didn't bother to change out of the clothes she was in even though there was a dresser full of comfortable clothing right next to her. Instead, she laid down on top of the covers and tried to ward off any oncoming nightmares of the games. There were too many terrifying memories. She closed her eyes, quickly drifting off to sleep.
"You shouldn't be watching that," Fives said, walking past Esinon who was sitting on the couch and watching the Hunger Games. "Just come and help me with dinner,"
"Echo's on-screen right now," she said, watching her older brother shift through the tropical environment, gripping a trident that he had found in the cornucopia. The Hunger Games had been going for a week and a half now, and all the tributes that were left were Echo, the boy from district eleven, the girl from district eight, and both tributes from district two.
"Exactly why you shouldn't be watching, come on, I need your help in the kitchen," Fives said, Esinon was about to flick off the TV and listen to her elder brother for once when she heard a yelp and the clash of weapons. Both Windcasters' gazes snapped back to the TV as the girl from district eight jumped out from the treeline and attempted to take a slash at Echo. The knife grazed his arm as he spun out of the way, trying to take a jab at the girl with his trident. She leapt up at incredible height and began balancing on the handle of his trident, the increase in weight on the handle caused Echo to dip a bit but he quickly recovered and threw her off into a tree. Esinon's muscles tensed as Echo stabbed the trident downward into her stomach and a cannon sounded. Echo didn't flinch, instead, he grabbed the pack off her back, and disappeared into the jungle. Fives grabbed the remote off the table and flicked the TV off. "Come on," he said quietly," Esinon slowly got up and followed Fives into the kitchen. She knew that Echo would have to kill people to win the Hunger Games, but she didn't expect him to not care so much.
The next morning…
Esinon slowly wandered out of her quarters, wearing a fresh pair of clothes. Fives was already seated at the table with the mentors. They were engrossed in a conversation about something associated with Hunger Games, at least that's what Esinon assumed.
"Good morning dear," Mags greeted, setting down a plate in front of her as Esinon sat down.
"What were you guys talking about?" she asked,
"What we should do first in the games," Fives replied,
"Get weapons," Esinon replied automatically, it had been drilled into her by her instructors. She'd done speed trials just to get faster, the training academy had even estimated the distance between pedestals and the cornucopia and how fast you would have to run to get to the cornucopia first. People who got weapons first often survived the first ten minutes of the games. Mags gave her a nod of approval,
"That's right," she shot Obi-Wan a look, "Good job Esinon."
"My advice would be to not go to the cornucopia. Eight to ten people will die in the initial ten minutes. Two to three of you will die within the first few hours. The capital will airlift those bodies out, but what are the bodies gonna leave behind?"
"Weapons," Fives replied, Obi-Wan nodded,
"It's in your best interest to try and survive and get your bearings before you start to run around killing people," he said,
"But they will be in trouble if they get an ax thrown at them or knives or-" Mags rambled,
"We get it, they have a lot of long-distance weapons," Obi-Wan said, aggressively stabbing his knife quite violently into the dish of margarine. "By the way, what are your guys' specialties?"
"Throwing knives," Esinon replied,
"Tridents," Fives mumbled, picking at the end of his toast,
"Do you have a backup in case they don't have one?" Mags asked,
"Swords," he replied, both mentors gave him a nod. Obi-Wan sat forward, folding his hands together.
"Now this is probably not something you guys will want to talk about but we need to," he said in a measured tone, Esinon's stomach flipped. "Your brother, he was a Capital favorite last year and he made the Games a family affair." Esinon felt Fives grab her hand under the table,
"From District four, Elijah Windcaster!" Augustan said in his booming voice as his suit glittered in the bright spotlight on the stage. Echo walked out onto the stage smiling brightly and waving to the applauding crowd. He shook hands with Augustan before sitting down in the pristine white chair across from the eccentric Master of Ceremonies. "Elijah, Elijah, welcome," Augustan greeted, "Or should I call you Echo? I heard that was your nickname,"
"Yes, yes it is,"
"Now how in the world did you get a nickname like that?" he asked,
"Now that is actually a funny story," Echo said, it seemed like the whole audience sat forward, "So when I was little I used to parrot everything my younger brother Fives said just to annoy him so our parents nicknamed me Echo and it's stuck ever since,"
"Guess you're glad they didn't nickname you Parrot," Augustan chuckled, Echo laughed,
"Yeah, yeah, I guess I am."
"Now, I wanted to talk about this clip from the reaping," Augustan said, everyone's eyes shifted upward as the reaping in district four was replayed on a giant screen behind Augustan and Echo. It was the clip of Echo waving down at Esinon and Fives, "So you have a little sister as well?"
"Yes, my parents adopted Esinon when I was eight. She's a little bundle of energy, she'll turn sixteen next year." there was a chorus of 'awws' in the audience as the clip flicked to the Windcaster having a group hug.
"And nicknames seem to be a running theme in your family, so does Esinon have a nickname as well?"
"She has a lot of nervous energy so we always called her Taz or Tasmanian Devil, like in the old cartoon." Another ripple of 'awws' went through the crowd as a picture of a smiling Esinon was put on above them. Echo turned back and smiled softly at the picture,
"And I assume you got to say goodbye to both of them, what did you tell them?" Augustan asked, Echo turned back,
"That I would win," he said, "for them, I want to make them proud more than anything. It's been a little harder- well not a little but a lot harder since our parents have died. I want to set a good example for them."
"I personally think you are a great big brother to them, is there anything you'd like to tell them right now?" Augustan asked, Echo stared straight at the camera,
"Fives, Taz, I just want you guys to know that I love you both, and I'm proud of you both every single day and I can't wait to come home to you."
"You can get sympathy during interviews if you bring him up, sympathy gets you sponsors," Obi-Wan said, both Windcasters forcing a nod.
"Obi-Wan is right," Sapphire said, "Sponsors are a key part to winning the games, water, a knife, matches can be the difference between life and death. Nearly half of you will die from natural causes, you need to play the game well."
"We will," Fives said, Esinon stayed silent, too trapped in her own memories to even process anything more.
"I'm not hungry anymore," she said suddenly, before silently getting up and heading back towards her quarters.
"That is not good manners!" Clover called after her, "Not very ladylike!" Esinon didn't care as the door slid shut behind her, Fives sighed,
"I'm gonna go check on her," he said, pushing his plate away and following after his little sister. He silently cursed the universe for hating his family before knocking on Esinon's door. "Esinon, can I come in?"
"Yeah," the muffled voice replied from the other side of the door. The door slid open revealing Esinon curled up in the dark on top of her bed,
"Do you…" He paused, he wasn't sure what to say next, Esinon was first to break the silence,
"Can you tell me that story that mom and dad used to tell, the one about the spirits who danced in the sky," she asked quietly, Fives nodded sitting down on the edge of her bed.
"They say if you are lucky enough to be awake when it happens, you can see when the spirits have their festival in the sky…"
One day later…
Esinon glanced up from the small part of the carpet she had been studying on the floor when she heard new muffled voices coming from outside the train.
"We're here," Fives whispered, she slowly got up to take a peek out the window. There were thousands of people, all from the capital, dressed in colorful clothing that made her eyes hurt and covered in extravagant jewels, fabrics, and makeups of every sort. She took a step back from the window with the intention of leaving to find some seconds more of solitude before she was put on display for the world to see but someone put a hand on her shoulder. She turned to see Obi-Wan standing behind her,
"You're gonna wanna smile and wave," he said,
"What?"
"Do you wanna live or not kid?" he asked in a gruff tone, she nodded, "Then do as I say, this is a way to get sponsors," Esinon turned back to the window and plastered a large smile on her face, waving to the excited crowd. All of the training came back to her and her mind went into overdrive. She waved and smiled just as she had practiced all the way until the train pulled up at the station, "Alright, it's go time," Obi-Wan announced, it was all happening so fast, and before she could even think she and Fives had been separated and she had been swarmed by stylists.
"Fives!" she called, "FIVES!"
"Esinon!" he shouted, attempted to push past stylists toward her but Obi-Wan rushed towards Fives, keeping him from doing anything rash to get back toward Esinon. She was ushered forward into a bright white room, she was then shoved behind a curtain and handed a blue hospital looking gown that was made of a plastic-y material and was told to change. At first, she simply stared at the gown before deciding to do as she was told, hopefully, Fives would do the same, and the sooner they could be back together.
Fives was really sick of people touching him. There were too many stylists and funny tools, and unfamiliar smells, he hated it here. He wondered if Echo had had a similar experience, laying on this table, staring up at the ceiling wondering what was going to come next. The only thought that was keeping him somewhat sane was the more he held still, the quicker he'd get to see Esinon. He had no idea how she was faring in this new environment, besides he was pretty sure Esinon had gone a permanent shade of pale.
"We're going to hose you down one more time then we'll take you to see Kolten," one of the stylists said, Fives didn't respond. He didn't spare a glance, he knew he wasn't coming out of that arena so he didn't care about any of this anymore. He was going to make sure his sister survived, and that was all he cared about. The stylists finished quickly, they then rolled the table he was lying on into a new room, it was darker, and quieter in here. Peaceful. He huffed out a laugh, it was like a mortuary in here, fitting.
The door creaked open after a few minutes and Fives finally sat up, his gown crinkling as he did. A man with skin the same tone as his walked in, he was dressed in the luxurious attire of the capital, but yet it was simpler than most others. It didn't make his head hurt, so Fives was grateful for that. It was a simple cream-colored outfit with teal accents. It reminded him of District four, Fives really just wanted to go home, take Esinon, and hide from the capital who just wanted to use them for a sick game.
"You're Fenwick, right?" the man asked, Fives nodded,
"You can call me Fives," he said,
"Kolten," he replied, they shook hands. "Now, you probably know why I'm here,"
"Can I see my sister?" he blurted out, Kolten stared at him for a moment, "Esinon, my little sister, please, can I see her?" The stylist stared at Fives some more, and he finally lost it, "Can't you hear me! My sister, I want to see her now," he growled,
"Interesting," Kolten finally said, "A tribute last year kept talking about a little sister too, looked a lot like you too. I haven't watched the reaping recap so let me guess district four, would that make you Echo's little brother?"
"Yes," Fives grit out, "now can I see Esinon?" Kolten motioned to the door and it opened again and Esinon stepped into the room wearing a similar blue gown. Fives jumped off the table and immediately engulfed her into a hug. He could feel her tiny body shaking underneath his grip, he let go and took a knee in front of her, "Are you alright?"
"It smells funny here," She said with a breathy laugh, "Nothing smells like fish and seawater," Fives chuckled,
"Yeah, I don't like the way it smells either. Too many fancy soaps," he said, Esinon nodded, she glanced over Fives shoulder, giving Kolten a once over. "I thought you two might want to be together," he said, "One of your mentors said that you might handle some of this, or you might cooperate more if you were together," Fives stood up, keeping a protective hand on Esinon's shoulder. Neither of the Windcaster siblings said anything, instead, they only wore a matching glare that was directed at Kolten. Neither of them trusted him, after all, he lived in the Capital, and no one in Capital seemed to understand what was about to happen to the two of them. Kolten sighed, "I'm sorry about your brother, I liked him. He was a remarkable person. And I'm sorry this is happening to you now," Fives's tight grip loosened on Esinon's shoulder as she glanced up at him. "Not what you were expecting, huh?"
"Everyone has congratulated us so far," Esinon said quietly, Fives glanced down at her, she'd always been more of a people person. Fives wasn't much of a talker, especially not those who lived in the Capital.
"Yeah, I don't really see the point in that," Kolten replied, "And I am sorry, I wish I could fix it for you but I can't. The only thing I can do is help you survive as long as possible." Fives didn't look at Esinon, he knew his sister hadn't accepted the fact that only one of them was coming out of the arena. He wasn't sure she'd accepted the fact she was here period yet. "I'm going to go talk to a few other stylists outside," he said, standing from his chair and walking out of the room.
"He seems nice," Esinon said after a moment, Fives didn't respond, all he did was glare at the door. Esinon tapped his arm, "Fives?"
"Yeah," he muttered,
"Fives," she said, making a more deliberate tug at his arm, "You have to stop looking like you want to kill our stylist. He's not a tribute you know," she half-heartedly joked,
"He's from the capital, that's basically the same," Fives growled, before he could get anything more out, Esinon had wrapped her small arms around his body.
"I miss Echo too," she whispered, Fives let out a harsh breath, desperately trying to keep it together. He was supposed to be the strong one in this situation, but as normal he was failing, and Esinon was there to pick up the pieces. In the moments of silence, they could hear muffled yelling outside.
"Get that out of my sight!" Kolten snapped, "She's sixteen, not twenty-five, that neckline is atrocious,"
"Sir, you designed this," A female voice said,
"With the intention of an elder tribute, not a girl," he snapped, the voices quieted. Esinon let out a small giggle,
'At least you won't have to beat Kolten up for making me wear something hideous," Fives gave a little huff,
"No, it's really lookin' that way huh Taz?"
"Maybe my outfit will be pretty," she said hopefully as they let go of one another, Fives held back a grimace at the outfits for the tribute parade in years past. They were never very flattering, and usually gaudy, a call back home while Echo had been in the games he had complained about all the bright colors they had forced him to wear had given him a headache. Fives let a bittersweet smile crawl across his face at the memory of his brother. Though since district four was fishing, he suspected they'd be in some fishnets, which didn't sound very appealing. And Fives had a sneaking suspicion that he was going to be shirtless as well, portrayed as some sort of ocean god. Well that would be just wonderful, he rolled his eyes to himself, it'd be great for all these Capital girls to be ogling at him like some sort of prize. Somehow sensing his thoughts, Esinon tugged at his arm again. "Fives?"
"Hmm?" she gave him a concerned look, "I'm fine Esinon, just thinkin' is all," she nodded skeptically, but wasn't given time to pry further as the door opened again and Kolten entered with two other stylists behind him with a long rack of outfits. Fives grimaced at the sequins and glitter that shown from the rack, and right on point, there were fishnets. Kolten looked both of them over before starting to rapidly rifle through the outfits. He tossed several dresses, a jumper looking something, a bunch of sequins, and a train of filmy fabric to one stylists. Fives assumed those were for Esinon, Kolten then turned to Fives, squinting at the young man. He then started rifling through the outfits again. He tossed several pairs of neutral-colored pants, and a cream-colored shirt, there was teal and gold mixed in, and to Fives's relief, he didn't see any sequins.
"Alright, Esinon I'll have you go with Glory into the other room and she'll help you try some of those on. I'll come and check on you in a minute." He then had the stylist he had handed the outfits for Fives set them down on the table. Kolten quickly organized the outfits into matching pairs, which Fives was thankful for since he wasn't very fashion minded. It was always difficult when Esinon asked him for outfit advice because he normally couldn't tell the difference between anything. "Try which one of these you like the best, and let me see and we'll go from there," Fives nodded and Kolten left the room. He scanned the outfits and decided to try on the one with the least components to it. He had a feeling it was going to be a long rest of the day.
A few hours later…
Fives was trying to hold as still as possible as Kolten made some last-minute adjustments to his outfit. They'd settled on a cream-colored shirt, that had gold accents, along with beige pants and a teal sash. He wrinkled his nose as Kolten applied some touch-up makeup,
"Yeah, I know you don't like it, but you don't wanna look washed out for the cameras," he said, Fives didn't respond keeping one eye on Esinon who had three stylists around her. She was wearing a more… flamboyant, outfit than he was. She was wearing a jumper that was the same color as his shirt and had gold accents, he recognized the tulle, as Kolten had informed him it was called, that had sequins trailing up the back from earlier, that was now around her waist. Her hair was done in an elaborate updo that had shells and golden twine interwoven with her hair. The stylists finally backed away from Esinon, she looked tired already. "Alright, you two are done," Esinon picked up the back of the train and Kolten shot her a look, "Be gentle with that, no wrinkles," Esinon dropped the skirt in a sarcastic fashion. She walked over to Fives, bounced on her feet, both of them were barefoot, 'for the effect' Kolten had explained. Fives wasn't sure exactly what effect Kolten was trying to achieve but he didn't really care anymore. He had tried on at least fifteen, he thought Esinon probably had tried on more.
"Well this could have been a lot more elaborate," she joked, staring up at him, her glittery makeup glinting in the sun. Fives chuckled,
"I got lucky, no sequins," Esinon spun around admiring the train and the sequins glowing in the sunlight,
"I don't know, I like it," both tributes glanced up as their mentors walked over.
"Alright, so I think you two know the drill by now," Obi-Wan said seemingly bored, Mags dug her elbow into his ribs.
"Now they are going to show you off to the world," Mags said excitedly, "Really my favorite part, it is really a thrill," Fives and Esinon glanced at one another. They both could tell that Mags was lying, trying to be strong for them.
"Yes, we are very excited," Esinon said with a smile on her face,
"We will see you after the parade," Obi-Wan said, grabbing Mags's arm and pulling her away. Esinon glanced and Obi-Wan and he mouthed to her
'Good luck kid,' Esinon gave a small smile and a nod as she and Fives climbed into their chariot. Her heart was racing as the sound of drums and music pounded through the city center, Fives grabbed her hand gripping it tightly as their carriage started to move. The horses trotted forward, Esinon squinted as her eyes adjusted to the light. There were thousands of people, she could feel her hand becoming sweatier in Fives as her training from the academy took over. She smiled at the crowd waving her hand just as she was taught, roses were tossed down in front of their chariot as Fives did the same.
"Seems they like us," Fives murmured through clenched teeth. Esinon chuckled,
"Just keep smiling and waving," she muttered, Esinon glanced up at the holo screens projecting her face, she gave her modest smile like she'd been taught at the academy, giving the smallest dip of her head. A cheer went up through the crowd as Esinon flashed another bright smile. Their chariot pulled up next to the tributes from district three. The music continued as the remainder of the tributes pulled up. The music quieted as President Palpatine stepped out to the front of the balcony and held a bony hand up to silence the crowds as he looked out over the tributes.
"Tributes," he began in his booming voice, "We welcome you to this very special quarter quell. We salute your courage and your sacrifice. And we wish you a happy Hunger Games. And may the odds… be ever, in your favor." he finished, the crowd erupted in cheers as the chariots began to move again and back into their barracks. Esinon climbed off the chariot where her mentors, Kolten, and Clover were all waiting.
"You two were marvelous!" Clover exclaimed happily, "They loved you!"
"Nice work kids," Obi-Wan complimented, Esinon gave him a nod. Esinon glanced behind her and spotted the boy from district one eyeing her along with his sister. She stared him down back, she felt Fives tug on her hand.
"Come on, we'll talk about our training strategy upstairs.
So I've had this written for a while and I was waiting until I had more but I wanted to try and tide you guys over while I'm still on hiatus for windcaster.
Anyways enjoy fives being a protective big brother