Lucent Saccharyn, Head Gamemaker:

Only a thin set of double doors separates me from the Capitolites in the hall. The chariots are on their way to the tributes' backstage area via the tunnels, and Jess and Gil and I are all very relieved that nothing went terribly wrong. It would be dreadful if there was an upset of some kind, especially since it's a Quarter Quell. It turned out great, though, and I'm pleased that the first Hunger Games I'm presiding over is going fairly smoothly, with the possible exception of one tribute's cussing-filled outburst..

"So let's address our first priority," Gil begins, the formality being mainly for the benefit of the assistants who are cleaning up the room. He has to act professionally when other people are around, and it's sort of putting a damper on the fun of being around my friends, but we're not planning to let it interfere with our conversation. "We need to discuss which tributes' odds have gone up. Betting opened up right after the Reapings were televised, and new numbers are coming in right now. Jessiah, would you be so kind as to read us the updated listings?"

"Of course. Directly prior to the Tribute Parade, the predictions for the Top Six were as follows: Livieoula, preferred name Livi, District One Female, was the frontrunner in first place. Eliza, District Two female, was in second. Rafe, District Two Male was in third, Jenna, District Seven Female in fourth, Oscar, District One Male in fifth, and Lyra-Rose, the District Four Female, was tapped for sixth."

"And who were the others in the top half?"

"Radley, District Nine Male, was in seventh and Trey, the District Ten Male, was in eighth. Soya, District Eleven Female, was in ninth, Amethyst, preferred name Thys, District Five Female, was in tenth, and Ardledge, District Four Male and Griffin, District Eleven Male, were in eleventh and twelfth place respectively." They're the same placements as I was discussing this afternoon in the betting parlor, so I'm not very surprised by any of this.

"And what are the post-Parade death order predictions?"

"Livi is in first, Rafe in second, Eliza in third, Oscar in fourth, Lyra-Rose in fifth, and Radley in sixth. Jenna, who was in third, got bumped down to seventh for some reason, probably that ridiculous squeaky plastic thing her stylist put her in that was supposed to be a tree stump. Not a good look for her, it really diminished the effect of that tough girl angle she had been going for. So as I was saying, Jenna is in seventh, and Soya moved up into the top eight also. Thys and Trey more or less exchanged places, with Thys in ninth and Trey moving into tenth, and Griffin and Ardledge kept their spots."

"That's a little surprising," I say. "The Top Six really got shuffled around."

"I know. Livi was the only one to not change places, and what's more, she's in first. I think she's shaping up as the tribute to beat."

"What bearing do you think this will have on sponsorship?" I ask. "Will the new odds make some people change their minds about who to support?"

"It's probably too early to tell for the majority of the field. There are a couple exceptions, which I'll be getting to in a minute, but it's already lending Livi a little more credit for staying on top. She'll be getting some extra support for sure."

"Look, Livi's already emerging as a prominent competitor," Gil cuts in. "And we ourselves have brought her up twice tonight as a point of interest. Lucent, I have absolute faith in you, but I've got to ask: do you have enough mutts and occurrences planned to leverage her if there's a serious power imbalance? If she and the other Careers get too tough, can you even things out a little to make it a fair fight for the outliers?"

"There's no doubt in my mind. My Gamemakers and I have been preparing for a long time, and there are plenty of surprise events that we haven't even begun to fiddle about with. Have I mentioned that the arena's going to undergo some transformations during the Games? Or that I have special miniature feasts? Or that new, creative, intricate booby traps are going to make an unprecedented appearance?"

"I don't believe you have! Please, you must tell me some more about that in the coming days. Thank you for confirming, though. Now could I please hear about some of those anomalies Jessiah was bringing up earlier?"

"Oh, for sure. So we've already learned how Jenna and Trey each fell a couple of places and that Radley, Thys, and Soya all raised some. However, there were some switches between other tributes as well. Quinten, District Six Male, and Elle, District Eight Female, swapped places. Now Elle is in thirteenth and Quinten in fourteenth instead of the other way round. Soren, the District Three Male, acted in a most discourteous manner. We made some attempts to conceal what was happening on the live camera feed, and much of his swearing was overwhelmed by the clamor of the crowd, but it was still clear to in-person viewers that he was spitting on the ground and being very profane and vulgar in his language, particularly in relation to some of our finest government citizens."

That was definitely the low point of the night. Soren's use of such colorful verbiage was not appreciated by most of the folks in the stands. It's already clear to me that Soren is going to be a force of chaos. Chaos can be a wonderful thing in moderation, a tool I can use to stir things up in alliances or induce a brief panic in individual tributes, but I'm not too thrilled about Soren's recent actions. Recklessness, a contrarian nature, and a desire to spite every person he encounters? That's a problem, and I see a glint in Jess's eye as he prepares to regale us with Soren's exact words. Gil is smiling too, because all three of us heard it earlier, and we're young and humorous enough to find it funny. Also because there are various servants scattered around, so Jess is going to have to muster up some seriousness, which is going to make the whole thing even better than it already is.

"Sir, for your personal planning purposes, you have requested that I read to you verbatim Soren's earlier statement, the one that so many took issue with, and for good reason, I might add. Is this still your decision?"

"Yes it is, Jessiah."

"I will of course comply with your wishes, but sir, please note that I am in no way personally disparaging you as I repeat in its entirety what was said inappropriately earlier by a boy who was clearly very troubled and distressed." He clears his throat loudly, and proceeds in his deepest and most formal Head Peacekeeper voice, "Soren Ventra, age fifteen, District Three Male said, quote, 'Damn President and that stick up his ass...what a bastard! Eat shit and die, you moronic skinny dickbrain. Your bitching about honor isn't fooling anybody, and I personally know everybody here thinks you're a dolt whose balls have still yet to drop, whether or not your pathetic self has managed to figure it out yet!', unquote. Sir, I am so incredibly sorry these words have ever been said, and of course it is a filthy lie. I apologize sincerely for your having to hear that." Around us, someone gasps. I turn around to catch the eavesdropper, but whoever it was has already returned to their normal tasks.

All three of us wear stern, unsmiling expressions, but I can tell that Gil is dying of laughter inside. There's something very amusing about being insulted and sworn at so brazenly. "Honestly," Jess says, lightening up again into a normal tone, "He's quite bold for saying such a dramatic thing, but that was one risk that didn't pay off. He's plummeted right to the bottom of the betting board, slated to twenty-fourth place for that extreme show of disrespect, and having previously been predicted nineteenth, several of the weaker competitors have risen a place. Some have actually risen two or three, due to their newfound popularity. Chip, District Twelve Male, jumped from twenty-third up to twentieth."

"Any other news?"

"Not much. Soren's little fit won't make too big of an impact, it's been cut out of all the television recaps, and only the first few rows of the audience could hear him anyway, considering how loud it was. The only real issue was how many people saw that he spat, but I've already made up a cover story and ordered Jack Cannon to express some sympathy for the 'motion sickness' he experienced. Had the prep team been aware, they could have given him some anti-nausea medication beforehand. The Master of Ceremonies saying that will dispel the talk of spitting and make it seem like nothing but an overhyped rumor, and I suspect that Soren will return to his previous position after the gossip loses its lustre." The servants will know better than to tell the public this, but even if they do, it'll seem like a dramatized lie.

I have to give it to him, Jess is a public relations guru. What happened might've turned into a PR disaster left unchecked, but he was prepared to deal with it and solve the problem permanently before it could become a nightmare. It's another reason I love him; it's a great relief to have someone who always knows the right thing to say.

"Excellent work, Jessiah. That'll take care of things nicely. Now we'll reconvene nice and early tomorrow, so I'm officially ordering you both to go home. Tomorrow we move into what's more Lucent's territory, with training beginning, so you are dismissed for the time being." There are handshakes, and after much nagging and hassling from the paparazzi and assorted celebrities, businesspeople, and senators, Jess is finally helping me into a shiny black car in the cool night air. An arm snakes around my waist as he slides in the backseat next to me, ordering the driver to take us to my house.

I haven't had any alcohol. Neither has Jess, we wanted to keep our minds sharp for our work tomorrow, but nevertheless I feel a little addled, too giggly and chatty and touchy-feely. It feels like the olden days, when we were still in school and going on our first proper date. Nostalgia washes over me as we settle into a comfortable silence, hands barely touching. It occurs to me that I could really sit next to him forever without talking and still be perfectly content.

Still, it makes me uneasy to succumb to love. I really want to let go of my inhibitions and act as goofy as I want, doing stupid dances in the mirror without caring how trashy or ugly or fat the tabloid magazines like to say I am, but love is still dangerous, no matter safe it might feel in the moment.

After all, just look at what happened to Mabel.


Hey y'all! I've been hinting at some subplot recently, especially in this chapter, and it's actually one of the reasons I'm doing so many Capitol focuses. I've included some foreshadowing in several of them, and I'm offering an opportunity for bonus sponsor points today. In your next review, if you make a prediction about the Gil/Jessiah/Lucent subplot, I'll give out an extra twenty points, plus an additional ten if you guess what happened to Mabel or how she's involved. I'll update again tomorrow, and I'm so excited to say that the first chapter of training will be out on Monday!

-LC :)