Someone you haven't even met yet is wondering what it would be like to know someone like you.
-Iain Thomas
The Train, June 16, 3:00 pm
Avalon Xerxes (23) POV
Victor of the 221st Hunger Games
"I want you guys to watch the recap of the Reapings first thing," I tell Christopher and Alecto. "Food can wait. You need to check your competition."
"Yes, sir!" Christopher booms. I glare at him.
"Do you think this is a game?" I ask, staring into his eyes.
"It's called The Hunger Games for a reason," he says, smirking.
"I can't deal with him already," I say to Valarious, the other mentor. "I'm mentoring Alecto or I'm not mentoring at all."
"Fine," Valarious says. "Topher is projected to have the best shot of winning this year anyway."
"Really?" he asks. "I mean, I'm not surprised, but I thought maybe some of the other Careers would give me a run for my money, especially since I wasn't even supposed to volunteer this year."
"Neither were both tributes from 4," I say.
"You've already seen the Reapings?" he asks.
"Yes," I say. "And I advise you do the same."
Without any more hesitation, I turn on the TV to watch the recaps. Up first is District 1, and we watch a thin and pretty blonde girl volunteer from the 17-year-old section alongside a tall and equally attractive 18-year-old.
"I like them both," Topher says. Alecto nods in agreement.
Up next is District 2, and I sigh in exasperation when Topher volunteers instead of Romulus. Idiot. Despite that, both tributes look incredibly strong, standing on the stage with stony, confident expressions.
District 3 is next, and I shake my head all through it. Two terrified children are Reaped; a cute 14-year-old girl and a sobbing 13-year old boy. Both look beside themselves with fear and I'd be shocked if either of them made it past the bloodbath. I can only hope they're killed by either Alecto or Topher.
"Dibbs on the boy," Topher says.
"Okay," Alecto concedes.
District 4 is next, and while neither of them was supposed to volunteer, both 18-year-olds look as confident as they would if they were supposed to.
"Strong," Alecto notes.
"The boy is a first-year trainer at District 4's academy," Valarious says. "The girl was supposed to volunteer last year, but this year, she was only the backup volunteer, meaning that she's less talented now than she was previously."
"Very nice," Topher says. "I like all the Careers."
"Same," Alecto says, simply.
Boring, gray District 5 takes the screen and a small but fierce looking blonde girl is Reaped and steps out from the 17-year-old's section. Following her, an extremely eccentric looking 16-year-old emerges wearing clothes so bright, they make my eyes hurt. He's crying harder than the little one from 3.
"The boy is harmless," I say. "He might make it out of the bloodbath, but he won't last much longer than that. Watch the girl, though, especially because she's likely being mentored by Alicia. She'll have some tricks up her sleeve."
"Noted," Topher says.
Next is District 6, and this is the first non-Career District that carries two contenders. A few tears escape from the girl's eyes, but she seems strong despite that. The boy looks a bit shy, but he's tall and walks confidently. The two shake hands and the four of us nod our heads.
District 7 follows, and again, the girl seems much stronger than the boy. The girl is Reaped and steps out from the 18-year-old section- the first of that age since District 4- calmly. She has a pretty face and a muscular body. The boy, however, is 12 years old, scrawny and short, and runs away as soon as his name is called. Wimp.
"I like the girl," Topher says. "If the others are okay with it, I wouldn't mind if she was in our alliance." Alecto nods in agreement.
The show flips to District 8 and I'm mildly impressed. The girl has a cold, hard look about her, and I can tell she's got some fight in her. The boy doesn't look too mentally threatening, but he's pretty tall and slightly built.
"Watch them too," Valarious says. "They're not alliance material, but there's something about them."
"Understood," Topher says.
District 9 takes over and I'm back to disappointed sighing. The girl is crying hysterically, but the tears are happy. If she's happy to be Reaped, I don't think she'll allow herself to last long. The boy looks incredibly poor, with stained clothes and a mess of long, dirty hair.
"Don't worry about them," I say.
"Wasn't planning on it," Topher responds.
District 10 is next, and neither of them is too bad. The girl, a friend of last year's victor, doesn't look very physically threatening at all, but she's gorgeous, so she'll definitely get sponsors. The boy looks relatively average. No physical wonder like Julius or Topher, but definitely stronger than a lot of the other tributes.
"Look out for them," Valarious advises. Alecto and Topher both nod.
District 11 is shocking, even watching it for the second time. Both tributes were somehow related to tributes from last year's Games; the girl was the girlfriend of the boy from 12 last year and the boy was the boy from 11's brother. Unfortunately for them, they're both relatively small and generally weak looking.
"Is that Ralix Levionne's brother?" Topher asks.
"Yup," Valarious says.
"And Jasper's girlfriend," I add.
"Wow," Alecto whispers.
District 12 shows up last and I immediately hate both tributes all over again. Both have the "Look at me and how attractive I am!" look about them. They're probably going to get a lot of sponsors for their looks and confidence, and it irritates me. Winning the Hunger Games should not be that easy for someone in an outer District.
"Thoughts?" I ask the two tributes.
"I like both from 1 and 4 and the girls from 7 and 10," Topher says.
"Same," Alecto says.
"Okay, so here's the plan," Valarious starts. "Make friends with Linda, Julius, Penny and Dustin at the chariot rides. When you get to training, do what you're good at and make the others scared of you. If anyone tries to ally with you aside from those two girls, turn them down. However, you should make it seem like everyone has a chance. If you have people present a skill to you guys in the hopes of you joining and you turn them down, you can see what the other tributes are good at."
"That's a great idea," I say. "Way to present it as your own."
"It's what I do," he says with a boyish smile.
"So, what do you guys think?" I ask them.
"I'm in," Topher says. Alecto nods in agreement, and I smile.
"Excellent," I say.
The Train, June 16, 4:00 pm
Julius Helios (18) POV
District 1 male
"Well, this has been beneficial," Linda says after we finish watching the Reapings. "We've established that the only non-Careers worth allying with are the boys from 8 and 9. Can we eat now?"
"I second that," I say.
"Alright," says Linda's mentor, Irene Chap. Irene is Cyrus's brother (who's my mentor), and they lost their brother Ambrose to the 12-year-old girl from District 8 in last year's Games. They're both a bit bitter, seeing as how most people thought Ambrose would win. Whatever. The same District rarely wins twice in a row, so Ambrose's death has just made it easier for me to win.
The four of us head to the dining car where we meet Livian for an early dinner. There are trays full of roasted meats and vegetables, pasta with different sauces, soups, pitchers of drinks and bowls of fresh fruit. Even being from the wealthiest District and living in more luxury than most of the other Districts combined, Linda and I are shocked. I've never seen so much food outside of a cafeteria at one time.
I grab a large plate and load it up with roasted chicken, mashed potatoes, steamed vegetables and gravy. Linda takes the same, but without the pasta and with salad instead of cooked vegetables. While we eat, Cyrus and Irene start talking.
"Do you two want to be trained together or separately?" Cyrus asks.
"I think together is fine," Linda says.
"Yeah, I agree," I say. "We've trained together since we were kids, and we're going to be allies anyway."
"Good," Irene says. "That makes it a lot easier for all five of us."
"Have you thought about our angles?" I ask, taking a bite of chicken. "How you're going to present us?"
"Well, Julius, you're quite physically intimidating," Cyrus says. "You're a top contender to be the leader of the Careers, so I'm planning on showcasing your strength, and your sheer ability to win the Games based on that alone."
"And Linda, you're honestly extremely pretty," Irene says. Linda beams. "You're the first District 1 girl in years who actually looks like she's from District 1. We want to play up your beauty and confidence as much as we can. The best way to get people to sponsor you is to make them want to sleep with you."
"That's reasonable," Linda says. She's always been beautiful and I've always been strong, so it comes as no surprise that those are the angles that have been chosen for us. I'm not going to complain, and I doubt Linda will either.
"Julius, are you okay with that?" Cyrus asks.
"Yeah," I say.
"Do you have a set plan for how you want us to behave in training?" Linda asks.
"On the first day, practice what you're already good at," Irene advises. "Make everyone else know that you're a force to be reckoned with, and assert your dominance over the other Careers. Second and third day, try to learn something new. You can never know too much."
"Focus on survival stations," Cyrus adds. "You can learn a lot about the arena based on the edible plant station."
"I guess I never thought of that," I say, wincing.
"Same," Linda says. "But that's really great advice. Thank you."
"It's what we're here for," Cyrus says. "It's literally our job to try to get one of you out of the arena alive."
"Makes sense," Linda says.
"Is there anything else you need to tell us today?" I ask.
"Is there anything else you need to know?" Cyrus asks.
"Not that I can think of," I say.
"Then no," he responds. "The real fun begins tomorrow at the Remake Center. The Tribute Parade is nothing to mess around with."
"So when we're done eating, you're free to go," Irene says. "Until tomorrow morning, that is. We're waking you up at 8 am for breakfast, and we'll be arriving in the Capitol at noon."
I finish my food at the same time that Linda does, and then we both retire to our rooms to think about the days to come.
The Train, June 16, 6:30 pm
Alayne Suzuki (16) POV
District 6 female
Even though Brian and I chose to be trained separately, we still spend some time together after dinner and before bed. We found a car with a couch and a TV, and we're sitting together making small talk. Despite the fact that neither of us wants to ally with the other, we're being civil to each other because that's what District partners do. Neither of us wants an enemy before we even meet the other tributes.
"Did you see anyone you wanted to ally with?" I ask, picking out a grape from the bowl we're sharing.
"I'm not sure yet," he says. "I want allies, I know that for sure, but I want to partner up with someone smart. It's hard to tell someone's intelligence just by looking at them. But Districts 3 and 5 are usually pretty smart. The girls look a lot more promising than the boys in both places."
"That's fair," I say.
"What about you?" he asks. "Anyone jump out at you?"
"I like the girls from 3 and 7," I say. "And both from 10. I wouldn't ally with all of them, though."
"Why?" he asks. "Do you like them, that is."
"They seem nice," I respond. "If I'm going to ally with someone, I want it to be someone I can trust."
"You don't think making a friend in the arena is dangerous?" he asks, perplexed.
"It's better than literally being stabbed in the back," I say. "Besides, we all know that only one person can win, so I think we're all smart enough to not get too attached to anyone."
"I guess," he says. "I just feel bad for this year's token romance. That never goes well."
"True," I say. "Who do you think it'll be this year?"
"The pair from 12," he says after a moment.
"Really?" I ask. "I was more so thinking the girl from 1 and the boy from 4."
"Only time will tell, I guess," Brian says.
"I don't think I'll end up partnering with the girl from District 7," I say. "I bet she joins the Careers."
"I thought you said she seemed nice," he says, confused.
"Yeah, but she looks strong," I say. "The Careers will probably want her, and you can't exactly say no to them unless you want to risk your life."
"That's true," he says. "Anyway, I think I'm gonna go to the room where I'm sleeping. I want to be alone for a while. Let things sink in, you know?"
"I get it," I say. "See you tomorrow!"
He gets up from the couch and leaves, and I find myself aimlessly channel surfing, discontented with everything that comes on. All that's on TV right now is recaps of the Reapings, commentary on the tributes and reruns of past Games. Eventually, I settle on a show where two middle-aged women are commenting on each of the tributes and how they think they'll do. They're pretty harsh. It's immediately clear that they have a strong liking for all of the Careers and not many others. They feel bad for the young kids and the people who knew last year's tributes, but they don't think they'll win. The favorite to win seems to be the monstrous attractive guy from 2, and I can't blame them. If I was a Capitol citizen, I'd put my money on him as well. They talk about me for a moment. They said they think I'm pretty but don't see me lasting very long. I can't blame them.
The show goes on for hours and I eventually find myself pretty physically and mentally exhausted, so I trudge to my bed car, change into pajamas and fall asleep before 10 pm. Tomorrow's going to be a long day, and I should definitely get my sleep.
The Train, June 16, 7:00 pm
Cyno Holding (12) POV
District 3 male
Now that it's guaranteed that I'm going into the Hunger Games, it's just a matter of how I'm going to die. I'm not going to win. 13-year-olds from District 3 just don't do that. So if I know I have to die, do I kill myself before anyone else gets the chance to? If I do it myself, I'll know when it's coming. But when would I do it? How would I do it? If I want to do it anytime during the Games, I would have to run into the bloodbath, get a weapon, run away and use it on myself before anyone has a chance to kill me. It's a tall order.
What if I were to let someone else kill me? It would be sort of a nice thing to do. If I approach someone during the bloodbath and let them kill me, it would raise their kill count and mean better things for them. That's a really good idea. However, there is every chance that I'll get cold feet during the bloodbath and not want to die, so I should have a backup plan. If I decide against my plan after I've run to the Cornucopia, I'll just grab whatever is near me and run away.
What if someone wants me as an ally? I'd probably say yes to anyone that was Reaped; if I decide I want to survive for a while, they can help me do that, and if I decide I want to die them it won't matter because I'll already be dead. But that's probably irrelevant because no one will want to partner up with me.
Sighing, I exit my bed car and go to the dining car for a snack and find Heather sitting at the table with her mentor Delta. The two are deep in conversation when I approach the table and grab a blue frosted cupcake.
"Hi, Cyno," Heather says, warmly.
"Hi," I respond with a smile. "I… I'm sorry for how I reacted during the Reaping. I know you were just trying to help."
"Don't worry about it," she says. "I don't blame you. You were scared, and I was too."
"Thanks for understanding," I say, relieved.
She doesn't respond and the silence becomes unbearable, so I take my cupcake back to my bed car to avoid making it still more awkward. I sigh once I'm alone again. Heather has been talking to her mentor for hours, but the only exchange I had with mine was when we introduced ourselves over dinner. He's sort of a distant person, and I get the feeling he doesn't like me very much, so I'm pretty sure we'll only see each other when we have to. Besides, when it's almost guaranteed that I'm going to die, what good is a mentor anyway? All he's going to do is give me advice on how to die less early on. I don't want to waste his time, so I decide to all but isolate myself from him.
The Train, June 16, 8:00 pm
Dustin Zigmund (18) POV
District 4 male
"If a non-Career tribute were to win, who do you think it would be?" I ask.
"The girl from 7," Penny responds instantly. "Who do you think will be the first to die?"
"The boy from 3," I say, just as effortlessly. "How many people do you think will die in the bloodbath?"
"Six, because that's how many died the last two years," she says after some consideration. "How long do you think it will take for Coral to kill me for volunteering instead of Elle?"
District 4's female mentor this year is Coral Ivory, who is good friends with Star Fire, last year's tribute, and Elle Maults, the girl who was supposed to volunteer this year. Penny was supposed to volunteer last year, but Star volunteered before she got the chance to, so Penny did the same thing to Elle.
"The real question is how long will it take for me to kill you," I joke. "I can't believe you did that."
"What was I supposed to do?" she asks. "I should have volunteered last year, so I was just doing it this year because I didn't get the chance when I was supposed to. Besides, you weren't supposed to volunteer either. Where's your justification for that?"
"I realized that Daniel wasn't ready," I say, simply. "I watched him train, and he just didn't have it in him."
"And you do?" she asks.
"Quite frankly, yes," I say. "They don't let just anyone be a trainer."
"Fair enough," she says. "What do you think our costumes will be?"
"Probably nothing new," I say. "District 4 has been in various states of undress for as long as I can remember, so I doubt they'll change it now."
"That's true," Penny says. "I just hope it's well received. If half of our alliance wasn't even supposed to volunteer this year, we'll probably need all the help we can get."
"I disagree," I say. "Just because we weren't necessarily supposed to volunteer this year doesn't mean that we aren't prepared. We've both spent our whole lives training for this, so even though we're not the most qualified, we're still plenty good enough."
"I suppose," she says. "I really hope one of us wins. I'm sick of District 4 placing second."
"Me too," I agree. "If neither of us wins, I at least want to not be in second place."
We both laugh slightly uncomfortably as we realize that only one of us can win if that. We glance at each other, and Penny winces while I sigh.
"If we both make it to the breakup of the Careers," Penny begins. "I don't want to team up with you."
"Same," I say. "By then it'll be near the end and I don't want us getting attached to each other when only one can win."
"Good," she says. "Um, do you want to watch TV?"
"You do that," I say. "I'm gonna go talk to the mentors. Hey, we can switch if you want. Coral can be my mentor if you don't want to-"
"Absolutely not," she interrupts. "I have a score to settle with her, and she won't talk to me unless she's my mentor."
"Okay," I say, wearily. "Just… I don't know, take everything she says with a grain of salt. If something doesn't seem right, don't do it. I don't think she would mind seeing you die. And it wouldn't be unlike her to give you bad advice."
"I didn't think about that," she says, thoughtfully. "Thanks for letting me know."
I stand from the couch and go back to the dining car where the mentors and escort are. They give me advice I already knew prior to going into this, so after a while of nodding politely, I decide to just go to bed.
The Train, June 16, 9:00 pm
Terry Kartcher (18) POV
District 10 female
Angus and Rowan are sitting in the dining car at the table and Piper went to bed early, leaving Fenton and me to talk in the car where we watched the recaps of the Reapings. I already decided that my ideal allies would be the girls from 6 and 7, but I haven't run the idea past Fenton yet.
"I think I know who I want to ally with," I say, cautiously.
"I know who is like you to ally with as well," he responds with equal hesitation.
"I like Alayne and Lydia," I say. "The girls from 6 and 7. They seem-"
"You should try to join the Careers," he says quickly.
"I… What?" I ask. "But I don't… Why?"
"Terry, you're beautiful," he says. I blush, despite knowing Fenton for years. "There's not a doubt in my mind that that alone will get you major sponsors, but it also means that the Careers will want you to join them. If you say no to them, it makes you a target. Plus, if you get them to trust you, they'll keep you safe for a really long time."
"Okay," I say, slowly nodding. "That makes sense, I guess."
"Playing up your appearance will probably end up being the main focus of your whole angle," he says. "Sponsors like a pretty face and-"
"Wait, hang on," I say. "Do I have a say in this?"
"What do you mean?" he asks. "You were okay with it 20 seconds ago."
This angle honestly is my best chance at survival, but all it will do is confirm everyone else's beliefs back home that I'm a whore. Is that a chance I'm willing to take? Would I rather live and be hated, or die and be… Well, I'm already pretty hated.
"Fine," I say. "I'll do it."
"Well, if you're uncomfortable-"
"Seriously, Fenton," I say. "It's fine. I guess I was just worried what the people back home would think. But everyone already dislikes me, and I don't think it can get much worse, so what the hell?"
"I'm sorry if this kills you," he says. "I'm kind of new at this."
"That's forgivable," I say, laughing.
Fenton and I talk for the next hour and a half or so about my strategy for the Games; how to appear attractive, bubbly, and confident no matter who I'm with or what I'm doing. We also devise a backup plan for if the Careers don't want me, which is entirely acceptable. The backup plan is to use my looks, as in the original plan and try to form an alliance with the boys from 8 and 9.
"So definitely not the girls from 6 and 7?" I ask, slightly disappointed.
"I can't actually tell you what to do," he says. "But I strongly advise against it."
The Train, June 16, 10:00 pm
Lydia Collins (17) POV
District 7 female
Even in getting ready for bed, my entire experience thus far in the Hunger Games process feels surreal. I took a shower in scalding water and was sprayed from every angle with soaps and oils, and when I got out, I was blasted dry with heaters on the floor, ceiling, and walls, which also bush and part my hair. I'm dry before I could have even thought of grabbing a towel. Once I'm showered, dried, and dressed in pajama pants and an oversized sweatshirt, I head back to the cart where I'm supposed to sleep.
I get into bed but find it nearly impossible to wind down after all the anxiety that the day brought. I start overthinking everything like I've always done when I'm tired no matter the situation. When I just realized that I had feelings for Elliot, I would stay up all night playing scenarios in my head where I told him and he wasn't okay with it and we stopped being friends. Every time I had a test at school, I'd be up all night thinking about failing and what that would mean for my grades. I guess I've always been a worrier.
Tonight, I'm kept awake by the thoughts of exactly what is going to happen to me by the end of the month. I've accepted that it's more than likely that I'll die, but I know that the only possible way for me to not die is to try not to. Nobody has made it out of the Games without trying harder for it than they have anything else. But will anyone want to team up with me? Will I find anyone that I want to team up with? What if I'm totally unprepared for the arena? What if I make a stupid mistake and it gets me killed?
My head is spinning, so I turn on the lights and look around the room for something that can distract me; something that can calm my nerves. There's a bookshelf that takes up an entire wall of the car and after some consideration, I pick a book that talks about each of the Districts of Panem. District 7 is really isolated (I'm assuming all of the Districts are), so I take this as an opportunity to see if I can learn about the other tributes without even talking to them. I don't learn much because it's hard for me to focus, but I do figure out that citizens from District 12 can't start work in the mines until they're 18, so neither of the tributes will be particularly skilled with a pickaxe. The same law applies to District 2, but I'd be willing to bet that Christopher and Alecto are able to use more weapons than just a pickaxe.
After a while of reading about how laws vary by District, I find myself unable to focus on what I'm reading so I skip to the section for District 7 and stare at the pictures of the forests at home letting them calm me enough to get me to bed.
The Train, June 16, 11:00 pm
Calico Jones (16) POV
District 8 female
"I can change you!" Conn protests, following me to my bed. "I have a friend who's just like you. Kalia. She's a... She sells herself too."
"You can say 'prostitute," Conn," I say. "It's not an offensive word."
"Well, it makes me uncomfortable," he says. "Anyway, I just want you to know that everything will be okay. I know it might feel like you're broken sometimes-"
"It doesn't."
"-But that doesn't mean anyone needs to fix you."
"I'm aware."
"And I just want you to know that if you want someone with you in the arena, I'm here for you."
"Thanks, but no," I say, trying desperately to close the door to my car. "I'm planning on going this alone. I'm sure someone else will want to ally with you."
"You think so?" he asks.
"I know so," I respond, turning my back. "If you'll excuse me, I'd like to go to bed, okay?"
"Okay," he says. "Night, Cal."
"Night, Conn," I say. I shut the door to my car and look around, happy to finally be able to go to sleep after a long and tiring day. I undress and change into pajamas, tucking my box of cigarettes under my pillow and badly wanting one. I reach for the pack and stop myself, taking deep breaths. I need to save them if I have any chance of surviving the arena, so I hold back.
I walk around the room, trying to distract myself when I find a small red button labeled "Avox service." Wonderful. I press it and within seconds, there's a knock at my door and a guy about my age and on the short side appears on the other side.
"Do you have cigarettes?" I ask. He gives me a quick nod and turns to leave. "Oh, and vodka?"
Another nod, and I smile. I let him leave and he returns a few minutes later with a pack of cigarettes, a bottle of vodka, and a shot glass on a tray. I thank him, taking the tray and he leaves. I smoke one of the cigarettes to calm my nerves and eventually find several of them gone, so I get to drinking. A few shots later, I've forgotten what I needed to forget and crawl into bed to sleep.
I have an extensive POV lineup so every tribute will have exactly 2 POVs before the bloodbath. No more, no less. Sorry also that the POVs varied in length; some people just had more going on, and it doesn't mean I like your character any more or any less. If your character has a short POV in any of the chapters to come, it's likely that their other pre-Games POV will be substantially longer. Alternatively, I have plans for them to appear in a lot of other people's sections and I don't want you to get sick of them.
Questions!
1) Thoughts on Avalon?
2) Whose POV was your favorite of the chapter?
3) Predictions?
-No one says no to Gaston!