[14] - August
Princess is waiting for me as I step out of my stylist's room. She's wearing a silver dress that accentuates her golden curls, which are styled down her back tonight. To match her outfit, I'm dressed in gold. A simple but effective pairing. I wonder what Rochelle's dressed in - her Parade outfit was hideous, from what I remember.
"I thought you were never gonna come out!" Princess whines, grabbing me by the arm. As the Games have grown closer, I've noticed that Princess has become increasingly stressed.
"I'm up first," Princess reminds me. "We can't be late. Let's go."
I let Princess drag me through the doors to the backstage area where we're being held for our interviews. I can hear music playing from the stage, but it's not enough to quell the sound of the massive crowd. Who knows how many people are here to watch us tonight.
The tributes that are here already have started to form a line, with the tributes from lower-numbered Districts in the back. I spot Rochelle - she's near the back of the line in a light blue dress.
"You go to the front," I tell Princess, releasing her arm. "I have to tell Rochelle something."
Princess just sighs. I can feel her eyes watching me as I walk over to my partner.
"You look good," I compliment Rochelle as I approach. "Nice outfit."
"Thank you," Rochelle says with a curtsy. "I designed it myself. Forced my designer to get it for me."
Why didn't Rochelle tell me this sooner? "That's amazing!" I exclaim. "You need to tell Valentina that. No matter what, slip it in there somewhere. That'll set you apart from the others."
"I will," Rochelle promises. "And I talked to Ramona, so don't worry. I finally managed to get some advice out of her, so I feel pretty good."
Great - I've been preparing for this interview for years, but Rochelle's new to all this. Hopefully, Ramona's advice prepares Rochelle enough to make a good impression.
I turn around at the sound of an impatient cough from behind me. Princess has returned and she doesn't look happy.
"They're about to start, August," she snips. "This can wait."
"You're right," I say apologetically. "I'm coming."
Princess turns on her heels, storming back to her spot at the front of the line.
"Good luck," I whisper to Rochelle, who smiles back. I give her District partner a nod as well before joining Princess at the front of the line.
The Interviews begin with Valentina and Venia's typical theme song, and Valentina steps onto the stage. She's wearing a floor-length red gown with hearts patterned across it - typical Valentina. Since Venia announced the training scores this year, it looks like Valentina is in charge of the interviews.
"Welcome, welcome, welcome..." she cries, joyful as ever. "To the 101st Annual Hunger Games!"
The crowd cheers, as rowdy as ever. There's a screen at the front of the line showing what's going on in the audience and on-stage, and I have the perfect view at the very front of the line.
"In just about sixty seconds, the tributes we've been dying to meet will finally be on this stage, ready to speak to all of Panem for the very first time. Are you ready?!"
Another cheer from the crowd. In front of me, Princess fidgets with her dress.
"Without further ado, please welcome our first guest. She may be from District One, but this year, she's Hunger Games royalty... It's Princess Belmont!"
Princess offers the crowd her dazzling smile as the crosses the stage. Her silver dress is blinding under the stage lights. Princess shakes Valentina's hand before lowering herself into a seat across from her.
"Now, with a name like that, I was expecting a full crown!" Valentina laughs as Princess sits across from her.
"Come on Valentina," Princess volleys back. "You know we have to save the crown for when I win!"
"So confident! I love it!" Valentina cries.
Princess' interview is beautifully crafted, word-for-word. I've practiced interviewing her before, and I see similarities from her previous attempts. She's a natural public speaker, I can tell. Before long, Valentina can't take her eyes off Princess, and it takes a loud bell to remind Valentina to move on to the next interview.
"What a lovely young lady!" Valentina gushes. "Next up, he's at the top of the rankings this year, but will he find himself at the top of the Games this year? Give a round of applause for August Vassault!"
An Avox escorts me to a set of stairs, and then I'm on the stage. The crowd looks even bigger in person. At the front of the crowd, a cluster of giant cameras moves in my direction, capturing my every move.
I have to remind myself where I am. Let's go, August. Make them remember you. I quickly cross the stage, shaking Valentina's hand before lowering myself into a chair opposite her. I rest a hand on my leg to stop it from shaking.
"Well, look at that!" Valentina says, looking at my outfit. "You're matching with your District partner, aren't you?"
"I am, Valentina," I respond as smoothly as I can. "And while Princess may take silver this year, I'm bringing the gold back to District One this year."
Valentina laughs a little too hard at my joke. "You are just a clever little thing, aren't you?" she cries.
After the volume of the audience dies down to a manageable level, Valentina gets serious. "Now, August," she says, looking into my eyes. "You volunteered for this year's Games, and you scored an eleven in this year's assessments. Does this mean that you've been preparing for these Games beforehand?"
"I have," I admit. "My father had a dream of winning the Hunger Games when he was my age, but his dream was crushed by the Second Rebellion. He's always encouraged me to follow in his footsteps, and it's an honor to be here today."
"How wonderful!" Valentina exclaims as the crowd murmurs in front of us. I think that I've made a big splash by talking about my father - it makes it seem like it's my destiny to win, a dream twenty-five years in the making. What more could the audience want?
"Now, you've been all anyone's been talking about since the Opening Ceremonies; your reaction to the announcement of this year's twist has been this year's most replayed moment. How have things been faring with Rochelle, your partner?"
"I'll admit, we did have a rocky start, as you saw," I begin, trying to downplay my public snub of Rochelle as subtly as possible. "But we've embraced this twist as much as possible. We need to rely on one another to survive, and we've become fast friends in the process."
"But surely, there's some lingering disappointment," Valentina presses. "I mean, your score of eleven isn't necessarily balanced with Rochelle's score of four; do you think that lack of balance could affect you in the Arena?"
Ouch. I'm sure Rochelle is fuming backstage right now. I just flash Valentina a confident smile. "I'm not worried at all," I reassure Valentina. "I think that it would be a bad move to consider either of us the weaker or stronger member of the pair. We are one unit, and we act as one since both of our lives are on the line."
"That's a great way of thinking about it," Valentina says with a nod. "Well, one thing certainly separates the two of you as individuals: your separate mentors. Many of our audience members are dying to know - how has it been working with last year's Victor, Decimus Ilyrian?"
The crowd cheers at just the sound of Decimus' name; last year's Quarter Quell is undoubtedly still fresh in everyone's mind. Not to mention that Decimus is infamously tight-lipped to reporters.
"Being Decimus' first tribute is a lot of pressure," I admit. "He has a reputation that is difficult to live up to, and I want to do him proud. But, as we all saw last year, Decimus knows exactly what he's doing, and I wouldn't want to be under the mentorship of anybody else."
The crowd cheers; I think that talking about Decimus was a good move for me. If the audience associates me with my mentor, then there's no doubt that I'll have an advantage with sponsors.
"Thank you so much for the level of professionalism you bring to this competition," Valentina says, bowing her head in my direction. "I think I can speak for everyone when I say how excited we are to see you in the Games this year. Everyone, put your hands together one more time for August Vassault!"
The crowd cheers, and I'm whisked from the stage as Zinnia enters behind me. I feel exhilarated; I made it all the way through without making a fool of myself, and I've done my father proud.
"Impressive," is the only thing Decimus says when I find him backstage. "Very good."
"Thanks," I say, still breathless from being on stage.
Decimus leans toward me, and I have to fight every instinct to pull away from him. "Princess doesn't seem to be... fond of Rochelle," he mutters in my ear. "Behind your back, at least. She was less than pleased during your interview."
I sigh. When will I be free from being stuck between these two girls? Doesn't Princess understand that my life is on the line here? I may have prepared for years alongside her, but there's no way I can protect her over Rochelle now.
"I'll deal with it," I murmur, watching Zinnia as she talks to Valentina on a screen ahead of me.
"Good," Decimus says, moving away. "You'll pay with your life if you don't. Mark my words."
If Decimus is saying that, he means it. I shudder a bit as my stylists arrive, moving to adjust my outfit. By the time they're done, Zinnia's stepping off stage. She's quickly replaced by Pollux, who looks even taller than usual under the stage lights.
"Great job," Princess says, moving to stand next to me as Valentina welcomes Pollux. "You're a natural, really."
"Well, I had a good practice partner," I say, and Princess blushes. I want to confront her about what Decimus told me, but I know I shouldn't. For now, the best thing for me would be to not mention it. Hopefully, once we enter the Arena, Princess will see how important our partners are and attach herself to Calder.
I turn my focus back to the screen in front of us. "It surely came as a shock to you to be paired with Mandy, the female tribute from District Nine," Valentina tells Pollux. "How has it been working in training with her over the last few days?"
"We've become fast friends," Pollux lies with a confident smile. "We have nothing in common, especially in our survival abilities, but I have confidence that... she... will take care of herself in the Arena."
Princess and I look at each other for a moment before bursting into laughter. I don't know what Pollux thinks he's going to get out of lying like that, but everyone will see the truth once we enter the Arena and he's one of the first ones to go.
"Fast friends," Princess repeats with a chuckle. "Idiot."
"Some people are too stubborn for their own good," I sigh as Pollux stands to exit the stage, shaking Valentina's hand on the way out. I'm not just talking about Pollux, but Princess as well. She doesn't seem to get the subtext, though.
"August," Decimus calls from behind me. I turn to see him approaching.
"You need to get sleep for tomorrow," Decimus says quietly. "Get yourself up to bed."
I glance back at the screen, where the girl from Three is struggling to answer Valentina's questions. "I need to wait for Rochelle," I remind Decimus. "To see how she does."
"It doesn't matter how she does," Decimus says, his face blank. "You did well, and that's what matters."
"That's not true," I resist, even though I know Decimus is right: people don't pay attention to the District Eight tributes. "I want to be here when she gets done."
Decimus pauses to look at me, and I have a feeling that he's also watching Princess behind me. I know better than to fight with Decimus in front of Princess, especially about Rochelle.
"I'll tell you how it goes tomorrow morning," Decimus says with finality in his tone. "Get some rest."
That's that, then. I bid Princess goodbye and take an elevator back up to the District One suite.
I'm exhausted when I reach my room - being in front of such a big crowd took everything out of me. I barely manage to throw my interview outfit to the floor before I slip into bed and drift to sleep.