Hello everyone! Sorry for the slight delay but I hope this somewhat longer chapter is worth it. Hope you enjoy it!
Disclaimer: I do not own The Hunger Games.
The next two days go pretty much exactly like the first, walking home from school with Rory, having supper with Mr. Mellark, and watching clips of the tributes on the television. Right after Mr. Mellark leaves to go home after supper on the third day my mother and I rush over to the television and turn it on because today is when they are going to show the scores that the Gamemakers have given each one of the tributes.
After the tributes have finished their last day of training they are judged on how well the Gamakers think they are based off of the skills the tribute chooses to show during their evaluation. The kids from District 1, District 2, and District 4 are what we call Career tributes because most of them train their entire lives for the Games, although it's illegal the Capitol turns a blind eye to it. The Career tributes usually score between an eight and a ten. Every tribute is scored from one, being extremely low; to twelve, being impossibly high.
My mother and I watch Caesar Flickerman, who is sporting a blue hair color that looks much better than last year's color which was crimson which made it look like he was bleeding from the head; talk to the camera about how important these scores are to the tributes. He explains how these scores are a major factor in how many sponsors you get in the Games. The higher the score, the more sponsors you get and the more sponsors you get the higher chance you have of surviving the Games.
First is District 1 where the male tribute, whose name is Marvel, is scored a nine. My mother and I aren't surprised because Career tributes almost always get the highest scores. Unsurprisingly his District partner, Gimmer, is given an eight. Both tributes from District 2 get a score of ten, I zone out for a moment and before I know it they are showing the male tribute from 11 whose name is Thresh, with a score of ten. I assume it's because of his strength due to his very large figure. Then they show Rue's headshot that they have been showing for every tribute. I think back to when I watched District 11's reaping and how when they asked for volunteers, you could only hear the wind whistling in response. It makes me exceptionally grateful that I have Katniss.
They show a seven in front of her picture and I let out a breath of relief. A seven is so good considering how young and small she is. I just have to wonder what it is that she did to impress the Gamemakers.
I quickly stop my thinking when I see Peeta's face fill the screen and he is given an eight. I'm shocked because usually our tributes score between a three and maybe a six, but an eight! He must have lifted weights because I've watched Katniss stare at him as he lifts a hundred pound bag of flour like it weighs nothing. Or he could have shown the Gamemakers his ability to wrestle. The one time Katniss actually talked about sports it was how she believed Peeta let his older brother win in a wrestling match they held at school. But Peeta still won second place.
Then I see Katniss's blank face fill the screen. I hold my breath in anticipation before the number eleven flashes in front of her picture. An Eleven! That's the highest score out of all the tributes! She even beat all of the Careers! My mother gasps and I let out a whoop of happiness. My sister got an eleven!
"Look at her score!" I tell my mother, excitedly.
"Is it really an eleven?" she asks.
"Yes, it is," I squeal.
"Oh my goodness," my mother says disbelievingly.
I jump up from the couch and pull her up into a hug and I can feel her shaking in my arms.
"Are you okay?" I ask, pulling away from her in order to get a good look at her face.
She has tears streaming down her face but is wearing a huge smile on her lips which I haven't seen since Katniss was reaped. "I'm just so proud of her," she answers before pulling me back into her.
Over my mother's cries of happiness I can somewhat hear Caesar Flickerman talking about how he bets everyone is very excited to hear what Katniss Everdeen has to say about her eleven, tomorrow in the interviews.
The interviews are one of the most important things for the tributes before the games (after the training scores), because the sponsors will be watching the entire thing. For the interviews the tributes are each given exactly three minutes to be interviewed by Caesar Flickerman before a buzzer rings and the next tribute comes up onto the stage and is interviewed. The female tribute always proceeds the male so Glimmer, who is the girl from 1, will be the first tribute interviewed and Peeta will be the last.
The next day goes by in a blur and before I know it I'm seated on the couch again and playing with the ends of my bright blonde hair with my fingers. I stare intently at the television just waiting for the interviews to come on. My mother is sitting next to me with her bouncing leg shaking the whole couch. We sit silently for a while until Caesar Flickerman pops up on the screen with a large smile, his paper white teeth shining from all the stage lights pointed directly at him. I overhear my mother mutter, "Finally," under her breath but I don't care about how long we waited, I'm just excited that it's on now.
Caesar first introduces Glimmer who is wearing a translucent gold dress that compliments her very green eyes and golden blonde hair. Most tributes have an angle that they decide on before the interviews and Glimmer obviously went for the sexy angle. Her dress gives her curves lots of definition and the way she purrs with every response she gives Caesar makes it very obvious. Her interview goes pretty well compared to some of the other interviews I've seen in the past. She plays the audience very well with her little winks that she sends out into the crowd and she also makes sure to let people know that she is a strong contender when Caesar asks about how she got her eight and she tells him with a sweet smile, "Lets just say that I know how to kill."
Of course her words shake me up and she is just this first interview. If all of the interviews are like this one then I don't know how I will be able to watch them all.
After Glimmer's interview ends, the male tribute from District 1 strides up the steps and up to Caesar. He is wearing a sky blue suit and tie and his dirty blonde hair is swept to the side. Marvel most likely went for the confident approach, he answers the questions that Caesar throws at him with "when I win" and not "if I win". He stands with his back straight and his shoulders back, I also notice that he uses his hands a lot when speaking. As he is talking I realize that he is not very smart, when he tries to use large words some come out in the wrong places and I have to cover my laugh as a cough. When the buzzer rings and Caesar tells him good luck in the Games he responds, "Don't worry you'll see me for the victor's interview," and struts off the stage, leaving a laughing audience who think he was making a joke, but I don't think he was trying to be funny.
"Well that guy was extremely cocky," my mother says with a scoff.
"Tell me about it," I mutter in response.
Up next is the female from District 2 who introduces herself as Clove. She is wearing a pretty orange dress with half of her hair pulled up into a bun on top of her head and the rest of her hair cascades down her back in dark chocolate colored curls. She looks very beautiful and seems somewhat sweet at the beginning of her interview but as the interview goes on I feel like she just keeps getting more and more arrogant. She brags about all of her skills and when Caesar asks how somebody who seems so sweet can have these deadly skills and she just answers simply, "People are not always what you think they are, Caesar."
I don't know why but I get a sick feeling to my stomach when she says this and I feel like I might throw up. Luckily I have a strong stomach due to all the things I have seen when working with some of the patients that have come to my mother and I, so I manage to keep my supper down.
Right after Clove leaves the stage after the timer rings the male tribute from District 2 stomps up the stairs and makes his way to Caesar. He is wearing a plain black suit that hugs his bulging muscles and he has on a menacing expression that makes me want to run away from the television as if he could jump out of it and grab me. For every answer he responds in a growl and makes it known that he is not afraid to kill and in fact is excited to do so. I can just imagine being a tribute in the Games and having to listen to another tribute talking about how much they want to kill. My body starts shaking when I think about Katniss going up against this guy, he is a ruthless killing machine and probably would kill her without hesitation. My mother notices my shaking and she pulls me to her side and runs her fingers through my hair.
Next is the male tribute from 3 but I pretty much zone out during his interview. I only notice that he is wearing a yellow suit which looks kind of odd, and he speaks very intelligently. You can tell that he really enjoys technology by the glint of excitement in his eyes when he talks about what inventions he has made back in District 3. I barely pay attention to the girl tribute's interview, all I know is that she doesn't seem to like technology as much as her District partner.
District 4's tributes don't stand out to me at all and I don't even remember their names, but the District 5 female sticks with me. She is wearing a strapless light blue dress and some of her red almost orange hair is styled into two buns right above each of her ears and the rest is curled and left to fall to her shoulders. Her facial features remind me of a fox's and her cleverness makes me associate her with the animal even more. She introduces herself as Finch and starts talking quietly yet very intelligently about many different topics. She for sure is coming at the interview with the clever approach and it was definitely the best choice. When Caesar asks how she thinks she will do against the other tributes she replies, "I'm very smart. I believe that no weapon can match a brain". Then the timer rings and she leaves the stage.
I have always thought that Katniss was extremely intelligent and probably the smartest person I know, but Finch seems to be even smarter than her. I feel like this makes Finch a threat because she will know more things than most of the other tributes.
I watch the television as most interviews just fly right over my head and I can't even remember a thing that the tribute said. It's not until District 11 that I actually pay attention to the interview. When Caesar Flickerman calls Rue's name she glides up the stairs and goes to Caesar with an elegance that I never thought someone who is my age could acquire. She looks stunning in her gossamer gown which is complete with wings. Rue looks almost like a bird about to take flight and I just watch her in awe. She is not shy and quiet like many of the tributes before her were, she speaks a lot but does not stutter. Everything she says, she means. While she talks about her best skill being her speed she says, "If they can't catch me, they can't kill me. So don't count me out". The entire crowd goes silent when she says this.
The timer rings and she practically floats off the stage and then her District partner Thresh comes onto the stage. He towers over Caesar even while sitting down. Thresh is the opposite of Rue with being over six feet tall and he barely speaks, when he does it's with one or two word responses. His interview is pretty uneventful and it's pretty much just Caesar trying to get him to talk more. Then once the timer buzzes it's time for Katniss's interview.
"It's time!" I tell my mother although she already knows.
Caesar calls her up using the nickname "The Girl On Fire" which is what the Capitol people are now calling Katniss, and I gasp when I see her pop out from behind the curtain. Her hair has strands of red inside of a braid that starts at her left ear and wraps around her head where it falls down her right shoulder. She is wearing a gorgeous dress that is entirely covered in red, yellow, and white reflective gems with blue accents which makes it look as if she is fully engulfed in fire. She is as radiant as the sun.
Katniss walks over to Caesar nervously and shakes his outstretched hand before he asks, "So Katniss, the Capitol must be quite a change from District 12. What has impressed you the most since you arrived here?"
She hesitates for a moment as she struggles to give an answer, then she blurts out, "The lamb stew."
My mother and I chuckle because of course that is what Katniss is most impressed with. The lamb stew. Although, just from the sound of it, it seems delicious.
"The one with the dried plums?" Caesar asks. Katniss nods. "Oh I eat it by the bucketful," He exclaims. "It doesn't show, does it?" He asks the audience in mock horror and the crowd shouts back reassurances.
I see Katniss let out a sigh of relief for Caesar helping her out. He may appear to be a bit loud and obnoxious, but he really does try his best to help out the tributes.
"Now Katniss, when you came out in the opening ceremonies, my heart actually stopped. What did you think of that costume?" He says holding his heart.
"Mine did too, Caesar," I mumble under my breath and I hear my mother chuckle.
"You mean after I got over my fear of being burned alive?" Katniss asks.
I laugh at her response with the entire audience even though I know that she is being honest.
"Yes, after that I suppose," Caesar says with a chuckle.
"I think Cinna was brilliant and it was the most gorgeous costume I'd ever seen and I couldn't believe I was wearing it. I can't even believe I'm wearing this, either," she gushes and as she lifts up the skirt she says, "I mean look at it!"
"It really is gorgeous," my mother says while the audience is oohs and ahs.
"She looks so good in it!" I squeal.
All of a sudden Katniss starts spinning and she is engulfed in real flames. I gasp in surprise but then start cheering with the crowd when I realize that she is fine. Katniss stops spinning and grasps onto Caesar's arm, claiming that she is dizzy. Much to my surprise, she also giggles which I think is part of her strategy although this will probably be the first and the last time I will hear Katniss giggle.
Caesar wraps an arm around her as if he is protecting her from falling off the stage. "Don't worry, I've got you. Can't have you following in your mentor's footsteps."
The crowd erupts into laughter as they remember Haymitch falling off the stage at District 12's reaping. I laugh too but my mother just rolls her eyes.
"It's alright, she's safe with me," Caesar reassures the crowd. "So, how about that training score. E-lev-en. Give us a hint about what happened in there."
I assumed it was because of her accuracy with a bow because she always hits her target. Whenever she hunts in the woods, the game she brings back is always shot right through the eye.
"Um… all I can say, is I think it was a first." she answers.
Suddenly the Gamemakers faces fill the screen and they are chuckling and nodding. I doubt shooting a target extremely accurately is a first so she probably shot something else and the Gamemakers thought it was great. The problem is I have no clue what she could have shot that was not a target.
"You're killing us!" Caesar exclaims, "Details. Details."
The camera shows Katniss looking up to the balcony and addressing the Gamemakers, "I'm not supposed to talk about it, right?"
"That's right. She can't!" one Gamaker yells down to Caesar Flickerman.
"Then let's go back then to the reaping,"Caesar says with a quieter tone. My body tenses and I notice that Katniss's does too. I know that he wants Katniss to tell him about me but I doubt she wants to.
"Her name's Prim. She's just twelve. And I love her more than anything," she says quietly.
I already know that she loves me a ton and I love her just as much, but I don't think the Capitol knew exactly how close we are. I feel a little weird about all these people knowing about me and Katniss's relationship but I conclude that it's probably helpful for Katniss to talk about me, in order to gain sympathy from the audience.
The crowd is silent and Caesar breaks the silence by asking about what I told her after the reaping.
"She told me to try really hard to win."
"And what did you say?" Caesar prompts her.
Her voice seems to drop an octave when she says, "I swore I would."
Sorry that there weren't many 'Prim thoughts' in this chapter. I felt like Prim would be more focused on what is happening with Katniss than what she, herself is thinking/feeling. I hope y'all are okay with Foxface's name, because Katniss was the once who came up with her nickname so I thought that I should give her an actual name. Please leave a review if you can! Stay safe and healthy. :)