Author's Note
I do not own the Hunger Games.
Meadow and Holden gave them as many preparation questions as they could. Luciente curled up on the sofa and watched the tribute recaps, while Hyperion did his best to mimic her airy indifference. The recaps started from the reapings, showing clips of each tribute on stage, at the train station, during the parade, and during training.
Finally, as the clock turned to half past three, the two commentators appeared on screen. They weren't sure what their names were and they didn't really care.
"Well folks, this is what you've all been waiting for! The training scores for the Ninety Fourth Hunger Games are in!"
Meadow and Holden joined them on the sofas. "Right then. Let's see what you've got and what you're up against."
"Dead people," Luciente said.
Holden frowned at her. "I do wish you said less creepy things when you decide to speak."
"First up, from District One, we have Damon Newbury with a score of ten!"
An image of the boy from One appeared on screen as he sparred with four trainers at once, his sword blurring around him.
"Next is his District Partner, Nike Arellano!"
An image of her holding a bow appeared in the bottom corner.
"And she got a score of seven!"
A glowing white seven whirled around her before both her image and that of her District partner shot up to the top of the screen, floating there.
"In District Two, we have Cairn Aphelion with a score of eleven! Would you look at that? That boy is going to be one to watch! Then we have his District partner, Livia Dolabella, with a score of ten."
"Nice high scores for Two as always," said the female presenter.
"Those are going to be your biggest threats," Meadow said.
Luciente gazed at the image of the girl, knife fighting with a trainer, and remembered watching the coyote rip her throat out.
No, she thought, she wouldn't.
The tributes from Three got a six and a four respectively. Meadow simply sighed and shook her head. Three had been doing badly since before they were born.
"And here's District Four! We have Aros Curran with a score of seven!"
An image of the boy appeared on screen, launching a spear into a dummy.
"He was the one that was reaped," Holden remarked.
Luciente shifted and watched as Ilenia's image appeared on screen.
"Ilenia Costello from District Four, with a score of eleven!"
"I think someone's trying to compete!"
"I do, I do."
The images were whisked away to the top of the screen.
"Next up let's go to District Five! First up we have Nathaniel Volkner with a score of four!"
"That's not a good start," muttered Holden.
"And Shelley Fisher with a score of six!"
"Average."
Luciente watched Nathaniel's image on screen as he struggled through one of the survival quizzes. It was a low score, but Hyperion trusted her judgement, and she wanted the boy.
Next up was District Six, and he saw her interest peak.
This was her precious Arielle.
"First up from District Six we have Wylie Cooper with a score of four!"
The boy from Six was scaling the climbing wall in his recording, scrambling up with his hands and knees.
"And his District partner Arielle Wayne with a score of six!"
"Average. And Six hasn't had a Victor in years," Holden said.
"They've got one now," Luciente replied, her gaze watching Arielle in one of the simulator rooms.
The pair from Seven got a six and a five respectively, and from Eight there was a pair of fives, and then it was District Nine's turn.
"First up from District Nine we have Azrayk Blaze with a score of seven!"
"Not bad for an outlier."
"And Abundance Harper with a matching score of seven!"
Holden nodded approvingly. "Nine's got a good pair this year."
"And now we've got our siblings from Ten! I know everyone's been looking forward to this one! First up we've got Hyperion Ripley with, would you look at that, a score of eight!"
His image appeared on screen, fighting with the spear. Evidently they had decided not to show the slingshots. Holden slapped him on the back. "Good going kid!"
"And for his sister – oh, what a contrast – a score of one!"
Meadow choked on her water. "One? What did you do?"
Luciente shrugged, watching herself on the screen. "Nothing."
From Eleven came a five for the boy and a six for the girl, and then from Twelve an eight for the boy and a three for the girl.
"He could be a tough one," Holden said.
Meadow was still fixed on Luciente. "One! What are you meant to do with a one? All you had to do was hit an average."
Luciente simply sat and watched the tribute scores on screen stack up. The Careers were highest of course, but Hyperion was just beneath them.
He was strong, fierce, wild.
They were more than numbers.
They were given barely twenty minutes to consider the scores and watch the odds on screen before Valentino and Luxuria, Luciente's stylist, came to bustle them away.
"Let's get you ready for this evening!"
Luciente cast Hyperion one last look over her shoulder as she was steered away to a large dressing room. A mannequin was stood on a small pedestal to the right. For a moment a faint ghostly blur shimmered behind it, a thin girl with blonde hair, last year's female, and then she was gone and it was just the two of them again. Luciente was unsurprised and yet not. There should have been more ghosts here in this place of death. What was keeping them away?
Luxuria waved a hand at the mannequin. "This is what you will be wearing tonight."
Luciente looked it over. It was pretty enough, she supposed, though not very practical.
"First we need to get you cleaned and prepped."
Luciente felt like she had showered – and been showered – more in the last five days than she had her entire life. She wanted to bite this woman, to run free with her pack-
But if she wanted to run free, she needed to not bite.
It was still tempting though, and she grit her teeth as she sat in the chair.
For a half second she saw the woman as thinner, paler, eyes sunken, lips white.
There was no need to bite.
She would get what was coming to her.
It took nearly two hours to prepare her for the interviews. She had to be showered, and have her hair washed with some sweet smelling soap and then twisted up in curlers, and have makeup painted across her face and skin.
Only then did Luxuria see fit to put her in the dress, lacing it up behind her back. It was tight around her chest and flowed down to her ankles. Luxuria slipped a pair of glittering black shoes onto her feet. "There. You look lovely."
Luciente thought she looked like a stranger. She bared her teeth at her reflection, but it didn't help. Luxuria tutted and clicked her tongue. "Don't scrunch up your face like that! Smile; show them how beautiful you are!"
Luciente bared her teeth at her.
