Train Rides Part 2

Jia Yang 15 District 8

I watched the sun disappear behind the horizon, through the window turning the land around us to darkness. Me and Pat ate our dinner before our escort and mentors quickly disappeared, leaving me and Pat alone at the dinner table. It seems like they have already given up on the two of us so I guess this means they think we're screwed.

Pat is quivering as usual and fiddling with different things including his shirt, his cutlery and his cute curly brown hair.

I need to talk to him, mainly because I can't stand the thought of sitting on this train, waiting to go to my death in silence!

"So your name's Pat right?" I ask

He looks at me and brushes his hair out of this eyes.

"Y-yeah but that's my nickname really" he stutters

My God this boy is so nervous but then watching the way he was getting bullied the other day, it doesn't surprise me. I'd probably be the same if I got bullied.

"Oh cool, what's your full name then?" I ask

"Pattern" he murmurs

"That's a nice name" I smile

He smiles back at me faintly.

"Erm b-by the way I wanted to thank you again for helping me the other day…I really owe you one" he says

So he does remember me!

"You don't have to keep thanking me, I was only doing what any human being should do" I reply

"And you don't owe me anything"

"Ok t-thanks but if you are ever in trouble in the arena I will try to help you out" he mutters

I can see in his eyes that he means it, he is probably more trustworthy than most of the other tributes will be even if he lacks confidence.

"I appreciate that Pat…I'll do the same for you" I smile

His eyes seem to light up and for the first time he stops fidgeting so much.

"This is starting to sound like an alliance!" I exclaim

"Yeah I guess it is"

He chuckles a little, I'm glad I was able to get him to relax a bit!

He then stands up and stretches out his arms with a yawn.

"I should probably be going to bed…long day ahead I think" he mutters

"Yeah good idea!" I say

I stand up as well.

"From now on we stick together ok?" I smile

He nods.

"Ok"

I reach forward and give him a big hug, at first he seems a little taken back but he eventually returns the hug. I'm guessing he doesn't normally get that many hugs.

"Is this normally how long people hug for?" he asks

"Probably not" I chuckle whilst quickly releasing him.

We then part ways.

"See you tomorrow" I say

I push open the door to my room, shut it behind me and throw myself onto my bed! I lay on my bed facing the ceiling where usually I would like looking at the stars.

I laugh to myself as I can't stop thinking about how awkward and funny Pat is. It almost distracts me from the horror that awaits…almost.

Jameson "Jay" Wright 16 District 10

My District partner Wrenna is just sitting opposite drawing on her sketch pad. She has so far refused to talk to anyone including the mentors. That's all she does, just draw in her sketch book. I know she's only 12 so I can't really blame her.

Finally, I decide to try and talk to her just to get rid of the awkward silence.

I clear my throat to try to get her attention.

"So your names Wrenna right?" I ask

She glances up at me with her clear blue eyes, almost like she is deciding whether I'm worth talking to or not.

Her eyes go back to her sketch book and she simply nods.

"So…can I call you Wren? Wrenny? Wrenster?" I joke

She looks up at me again, not seeming very amused by my joke. I'll give it one more go to start a conversation with her and then I'm giving up.

"What are you drawing?" I ask

"A maze" She answers without taking her eyes off the book.

Still those are the first words I've heard come out of her mouth the whole time we've been here! She must think I'm more worthy of a conversation than anyone else she's met so far.

She turns the picture around to show me the maze. It seems incredibly detailed however I've never seen a maze of any kind in District 10.

"Where did you see that?" I ask

"It was in my dream last night" she answers softly

"Wow you have a good memory" I comment

She just shrugs, almost like she's getting bored of me. Honestly this girl is starting to creep me out a little as well. I begin to feel my eyes go heavy as I look out the window into the blackness! I can't believe how late it is!

I stand up I make myself do a fake yawn so I have an excuse to go to bed.

"I better get to bed" I say

She doesn't answer and continues drawing her Maze.

"Well…good talkin to ya" I mutter

I head to my room and shut the door behind me. I notice a huge capitol mirror with my reflection staring back at me. I hate everything about me! My boring grey eyes, my body, large nose, tight jawline, large lips and ears that pop out!

Man I miss Hunch so much! He was the only person that made me feel good about myself. I wish I had been able to escalate it further with him, if I knew this was gonna happen then I would have done everything in my power to!

Maverick "Rick" Colver 18 District 4

The train door closes behind me, leaving me and Salacia inside. When our eyes meet, I lean against the door with my forearm, in a flirty way.

"Hey" I say, winking at her.

She just looks unimpressed, rolling her eyes.

"Man you're weird" She states

Suddenly the door slides open, causing me to crash onto the floor since it was the only thing that was supporting me. The mentors step over me to get inside, I can't believe they would just knock me over then completely ignore me!

I quickly stand up, rubbing my arm in pain.

"I'm ok…I'm ok, I meant to do that" I lie

"Oops! I didn't see you there" the female mentor says

She is an old woman with her white hair typed up in a bun, wearing a long grey coat. I remember her now, she is famous in our District, being one of the most experienced mentors in Panem.

"They should have warned us there would be an idiot on the floor" the male mentor smirks

This mentor looks like and snake and acts like one too.

"So I'm an idiot am I? Well would an idiot be able to do this?"

I throw myself back on the floor and do 8 pushups with just one arm.

"Now now play nice boys" the older woman warns us.

I get up and follow them to the table that Salacia is on. Salacia practically swoons when she sees the female mentor!

"You're River aren't you!" she blushes

She begins fanning herself with her hands to try to keep cool. I just roll my eyes.

"Sorry but I'm such a huge fan! You've been an inspiration to me!" she exclaims

"The pleasure is all mine" River replies

Salacia seems like she is almost going to collapse with excitement, I just don't get what the big deal is.

"Yeah alright you two, get a room" I joke, wanting to bring the attention back to me.

Everyone just glares at me, my eyes dart around the train in response.

"Who said that?" I ask

"Just ignore him, I think he was hit on his head when he was younger or something" Salacia says

This brings back memories of my dad smashing a bottle over my head on multiple occasions! I almost lose it but I need to compose myself…I can't show any signs of weakness!

"Says you" I respond, looking into her left eye which is clearly not working properly.

"Guys!" River interjects

"If you want to increase your chances of victory then you're both going to have to learn to get along"

I stare into Salacia's brown eyes and she glares back.

"Fine" she concedes

"Now shake hands" the male mentor orders.

We reluctantly reach forward and shake each other's hand.

Clara Labeau 18 District 9

Ryland is dressed a lot better than during the reaping's, he is wearing a smart suit and has cleaned up the dirt and blood from his face. However, he still seems to have the cuts and bruises on his face. I still feel sorry for him. He seems very small and thin even for a 13-year-old, with very pale skin and floppy hair.

"Are you alright? Those bruises look nasty" I say with a warm smile.

"Yeah whatever I've heard it all before!" he barks

My sympathy for him automatically falls through the roof, although it is still kind of there. It doesn't surprise me that he is so bruised though if he is such an ass to people.

I quickly stand up and prepare to go to my bedroom, I don't feel like spending another second with this nasty boy.

"Good, you were really tedious company anyway" he snarls as I leave.

I can really see this boy making me want to kick his head in, something I've never really felt like doing to anyone. Maybe he was placed here on purpose to get me ready for the Hunger Games? No! I don't want to lose who I am in the games, I'm gonna spend as little time around Ryland as possible just so I don't lose my temper!

When I get into my room I decide to take a shower. I am mulling Ryland over in my head and I think I'll give him another chance. Everyone has a reason for being the way they are and I'm sure he has a good one, nobody is beyond helping I don't believe. Maybe I'll try to learn more about him and his past. I'm sure there's a good person in there deep down.

After my shower I decide to go to bed, thinking about the crazy situation I've found myself in. How much my parents and sister must be missing me and how they must be hurting every night.

Ryker Shenal 17 District 11

Our train speeds through the crowded Capitol with swarms of people gathered around, waving at us and cheering. The reserved Cherry is reluctantly, slowly waving at the crowds even trying to smile a little. I simply sit with my elbow on my table, covering my face with my hand, staring at the table.

"Give them a wave Ryker" my mentor says in his rough, croaking voice.

He is a slightly chubby man in his forties, any hair that he might have bad is shaved off and he has a nasty scar on his left eye which he said he obtained from his Hunger Games.

"I'd rather not show my face" I mention

"Why not?" my mentor asks

"Let's just say I'm not exactly on good terms with the Capitol" I answer

This finally seems to peek Cherry's interest, she leaves the window to face me instead.

"Of course, I remember from your file, you were the only survivor of that massacre last year"

I remove my hand from my face and look up at him, slightly annoyed that he brought it up. I then look over to Cherry who has a shocked look in her eyes.

"It's true" I murmur

"How were you able to survive?" Cherry asks

We pass under a tunnel, turning the train darker.

"I guess I just got really lucky" I mutter

This is the first conversation I've had with Cherry since I've been here and of course it has to be about the last subject on Earth that I want to talk about!

"It wasn't luck, he assaulted a Peacekeeper" my mentor insensitively chimes in.

"I'd really prefer if we didn't talk about this!" I exclaim

My mentor doesn't seem like a very caring or understanding man unfortunately.

"Hey, it's not a bad thing, it's proven that you have some fight in you" he explains

I guess he kind of has a point but I'd rather he didn't paint me as this violent person in front of my District partner. I look at Cherry who is clearly already building a picture of who I am in her head.

"Don't think of me as a violent or bad person because…because that's not who I am…I don't think" I stutter

She smiles at me and nods.

"It's ok, I believe you" she says

Well I'm glad we got Cherry to open speak to us, even if it was about the most traumatic thing that has happened to me. I guess it will soon be the second most traumatic thing that's happened to me.

Emerson Ingles 18 District 7

I wish I could communicate better with Alistair. So far it's just been a matter of him saying something and then me either nodding, shrugging or shaking my head. It seems like no one can be bothered to get a translator to help us out.

I watch the giant of a boy happily wave to all the crowds as we pass through the Capitol, I think if we were able to communicate he would be an extremely useful asset due to his height. It's funny though, even with his height he looks a little goofy with his curly hair, freckles and innocent smile. Personally, I get the feeling that he might be physically strong but he doesn't have the will to actually hurt someone, much less kill them. I might be wrong though we'll see I guess.

I for one can't let anything stop me from getting home and if that means that I might have to kill a few people then fine!

"It's almost like they're looking forward to watching us die" Alistair comments

Well of course they are Alistair, otherwise these games wouldn't exist. I simply smile and nod at his comment.

The train seems to be coming to halt finally. It looks like we're here!

"Well here goes nothing…" Alistair comments

He looks down at me with a smile.

"Good luck Emerson" he says

I just return a smile at him and give him a nod. Man I wish I could have said something to him.

We move towards the door and prepare to step off the train for the first time! Our escort puts her hands on our shoulders, ready to usher us through the crowds! I'm not looking forward to the bit that comes after this, the stylists! My mentor told me that this is the bit where they treat you like animals! Not even given a second thought to our privacy but then there's no reason why they would since they broadcast us brutally murdering each other to the entire nation!

So here's the latest chapter! Sorry it took a while to get out but I had a bad case of writers block lol. Please review to let me know what you think of how your characters are progressing!