Bellona Hargrove, Intern, 24

As the last tribute left the Training Center, Tellus sat back in his seat, sighing contently. "Good show, good show," he declared drunkenly.

"If you'd rather drink then do your job, Tellus, feel free to leave," snapped the Head Gamemaker. She was a tall, slim woman, always perfectly dressed and not a hair out of place. Right now, she was seated at the head of the table overlooking the Training Center.

"No, no, I'll stay," said Tellus, sobering up a little. He raked a hand through his auburn hair, attempting to smooth it into place. I noticed a few others straighten up, their eyes clearing somewhat.

"I don't know why she bothers. They're all drunk," murmured Elton, the other intern this year. We were seated on the outskirts of the meeting, taking notes and observing.

"True," I whispered back. He flashed me a cheeky grin, and I smiled back. Elton was full of quips and comments, and his presence had certainly made this internship much more lively.

"Very well," said Madam Head Gamemaker. "Time to discuss what we've seen and give scores, then. For those of us who are newcomers this year, we will go in order through the districts, female, then male. The interns will write down the final list so we can keep our minds on the tributes instead of bookkeeping. All of you should have been taking notes during the sessions to reference."

I glanced down at our notepad. Elton and I had taken turns jotting down each of the tribute's activities, and we had a pretty full, detailed account of what everyone had done.

"Let's get this over with," said one of the older Gamemakers. His name was Casca, if I was remembering correctly. He had a salt-and-pepper beard and small, beady eyes. He was always full of stubborn opinions. "This has gone on long enough. I'm ready to go home."

"I'll remind all of you that this is your job and I expect you to take it seriously," said the Head Gamemaker, her voice stern.

"Yes, yes," said Casca, waving his hand dismissively. "So, the girl from One?"

"Average," said Tellus, who was still slurring slightly.

"A good start, I thought," said another Gamemaker. Her name was Holliday, and she was one of the kinder Gamemakers I'd met during this job. Her graying hair was pulled back into a braid, and her uniform was neat as always. She had a smooth, calming voice, and was often the voice of reason during discussions. Along with Madam Head Gamemaker, of course. "And stronger than many of the others we saw."

"But stronger than the rest of her alliance?" asked Casca.

"I would say solidly in the middle," said Holliday.

"She's skilled with her knives, no doubt," said Madam Head Gamemaker. "She will be a strong player. But she wasn't as creative as the other girl. I propose a 9."

"Rather high, don't you think?" asked Casca.

"Well, she was more impressive than the boy, and I thought he was in the 8 range," said Madam Head Gamemaker.

"I think that's fair," said Holliday.

The rest of the Gamemakers murmured their agreement, most of them at least a little tipsy from the feast. They seemed content to sit back and let the other four make all the decisions. Many of them were specifically tasked with the arena and muttations anyway, not anything related to the actual tributes.

"9 for the District One girl, 8 for the District One boy," said the Head Gamemaker.

I wrote down their scores on my notepad, then passed it to Elton. We had decided to take turns so that we wouldn't get too bored.

"I thought the boy was more of a 7," said Tellus distastefully. "Too showy for me, really. And one of his throws missed altogether."

"'Showiness' is what the Games are all about," said Madam Head Gamemaker. "Qualities like that are to be rewarded."

"But he wasn't even taking it seriously," said Tellus.

"Like he's taking his job seriously," whispered Elton. I suppressed a chuckle.

"He's very flashy," agreed Madam Head Gamemaker. "But we don't have many flashy tributes this year. He stood out."

Tellus considered that. "I suppose," he eventually said.

"Let's move on to District Two. Both very impressive," said Madam Head Gamemaker.

"I agree," said Casca.

"I as well," said Holliday.

"I liked that the girl threw multiple knives at once. That's a very impressive, high-level skill," said Madam Head Gamemaker.

"And even when she threw multiple knives at once, every hit was deadly," added Holliday.

"Oh, come on. We've seen tributes use throwing knives so many times. It's nothing special," said Casca.

"But she's exceptional," argued Holliday. "A 9 at the minimum. Maybe even a 10."

"Not an 11, though," said Madam Head Gamemaker. "A 10, I can agree with."

"But was the boy equally as impressive?" asked Casca. "I would argue he was even better."

"He's good at sparring," said Tellus. "I liked the move with the knife at the end."

Heads nodded around the table. I remembered that session well- the tribute had demonstrated a variety of smooth moves, the best being when he pretended to fall and then whipped out a knife. No one had seen him take the knife.

"An 11?" asked Tellus.

"I wouldn't go that far," said Holliday. "He's a high 10, but not an 11. Again, it's not something we haven't seen."

"We haven't seen the knife move," argued Tellus.

"I agree with Gamemaker Holliday," said Madam Head Gamemaker. "10 for each. Let's discuss District Three."

Elton scribbled down the numbers and passed me the notepad.

"The girl was fine," said Holliday, who was referencing her notes. "Very good at the edible plants test, and a strong climber. She has survival skills."

"She was boring," Tellus whined. "Give her a 3."

"That's ridiculous," said Madam Head Gamemaker. "Even an intern wouldn't assign her a score that low."

Most of the heads at the table swiveled in our direction. Elton shrugged.

"Well, okay then," said Tellus, crossing his arms. "What would you say?"

Everyone was watching us now, their gazes intense.

"You have the notepad," Elton said, nudging my leg.

I hesitated. "I… I would say a 6," I said.

"Why?" asked the Head Gamemaker.

I glanced at my notepad. "She is very strong in the survival stations, which warrants a decent score. But she didn't show us any weapons, so she can't get anything above a 6 or 7. And 7 feels too high."

"Very well," said Madam Head Gamemaker. "A 6 it is."

I jotted it down in the notepad, feeling a warm glow of pride rise in my chest.

"Oh, come on," said Tellus. "She's an intern. This is nepotism!"

"This has nothing to do with Bellona. It's not her fault that you couldn't give an accurate score," said Madam Head Gamemaker.

"It has everything to do with her! She's your kid, Minerva!" said Tellus.

"Are you really jealous of an intern?" snapped my mother. "And ultimately, this is my decision. I feel that a 6 for this tribute is more accurate than a 3. Does anyone actually disagree with that?"

"I agree with you and Bellona," said Holliday.

"Don't be such an ass-kisser, Holliday," said Tellus. "No one even likes you."

A few of the less-sober Gamemakers chuckled drunkenly, only stopping when my mother glared at them.

Madam Head Gamemaker turned her glare on Tellus. "Don't make me reprimand you again, Tellus. I don't care who your father is. Get ahold of yourself or I'll have your tongue out before the sun rises tomorrow morning."

Tellus rolled his eyes, but said nothing.

"As for the boy," my mother continued, her tone relaxing somewhat, "not as impressive. His use of the spears was mediocre at best."

"He wasn't completely terrible," said Holliday. "Maybe a 5."

"Others were worse," Casca agreed.

"6 and 5 for District Three. As for District Four, let's discuss the girl first."

I passed the notepad back to Elton, who prepared to write.

"Not impressive," said Casca. "I don't even know what that weapon was."

"It was a harpoon gun," said Atala, who had been sitting in the back. As the Head Trainer, Atala attended the Private Sessions with the Gamemakers, contributing her expertise as necessary.

"Well, great," said Casca. "Still not very good."

"There was room for improvement, but her shots were good," said Holliday. "And she showed us she's a strong swimmer. That's an 8 for me."

"The harpoon gun was average, but the swimming helped her greatly," agreed my mother. "An 8 it is."

"The boy, however, was great," said Casca, moving on to the next tribute. "I liked him very much."

"The snare was excellent," my mother agreed. "And he was able to strike the dummy within it from a great distance. He will be a fierce competitor, no doubt."

"A 9, then?" asked Tellus, who had by now recovered some of his pride. "Or a 10?"

"The creativity warrants a 10," said my mother. "Let's move on to 5. The first tribute, I'm told, is nonbinary."

"There are two more," said Atala. "There's another from Nine and one from Eleven."

"Who cares?" mumbled Tellus, wisely keeping his remarks quiet enough that my mother couldn't hear.

"Noted," said my mother. "It's important to know our tributes well. The nonbinary tribute, then, was decent with the knives, especially for someone new to them. And they were good at the obstacle course as well."

"I'd say a 7 for them," said Casca. "Easily a 9 if they were trained, but that's simply not the case."

"And the boy?" asked Holliday. "I'm not sure what to say."

"A 1," my mother said curtly. "He gave us nothing to judge."

"Well, he gave a grand speech," said Tellus. "I'm not sure what the demon thing was about, but he's an excellent speaker. And he did stab that dummy. Very fiercely, I might add."

"But as soon as the speech ended, he hid from us. You can't hide for almost all of your session and expect a good score," said Holliday "I think a 3 for the stabbing, but that's as high as it can go."

Madam Head Gamemaker shook her head. "The speech was too disrespectful. A 1."

"I agree, actually," said Casca. "Very insulting."

"7 and 1, then," said Madam Head Gamemaker. "District Six. The girl?"

Holliday consulted her notes again. "Very strong fire-building. Surprisingly decent with her knife."

"Fires are foolish," said Casca. "They get tributes killed."

"She's a 5, I think," said my mother. The other Gamemakers chorused their agreement, so she moved on to the boy.

"Very fast runner," said Holliday.

"But too shaky," said Casca. "He couldn't get his hands to stop shaking. If he can't even hold a weapon, does he get a high score? I don't think so."

"A 5 as well?" asked Holliday.

"I think so," said my mother. "Now, let's talk about the tributes from Seven."

"The girl was fairly average," said Holliday. "Strong survival skills, but showed no weapons prowess. Similarly to the girl from Three, I recommend a 6."

Casca nodded. "I agree."

"I do as well," said my mother. "And the boy?"

"The boy is clearly strong," said Casca. "Career-level with the throwing axes, and demonstrated survival knowledge. An 8 at least."

"8 feels right," said my mother. "The boy clearly has potential. If he survives the Bloodbath, I'll be interested to see what he does. Let's move on to District Eight."

"Was that Batiste's daughter?" asked Holliday.

"Yes," my mother said.

"For a Victor's daughter, it was a very lacking performance," said Casca.

"Well, she's not a Career," said Holliday.

"I don't care," said Casca. "I was expecting more. I vote that she gets a 4."

"Hold on," said Madam Head Gamemaker. "She was nothing special, but she was competent in the skills she showed us. Good trap-setting, knowledge of edible plants."

"No weaponry, though," said Casca. "And that's what everyone's expecting from her."

"I think a 4 is too low," said my mother. "A 6? Competent, but not impressive."

"The boy was better," said Casca. "Clearly very good with the spears, especially for an untrained tribute. But there's no proof he can survive."

"Better than a 6, weaker than an 8," said Holliday.

"Then he earns a 7," said my mother.

"Let's discuss District Nine," said Holliday. "The first tribute was very strong. They also did well on the edible plants- very well- and they were one of the only tributes to use the scythe. They clearly know what they're doing."

"I agree," said Casca. "If they can survive the first night, there's a chance there. A 7?"

"7 feels right," said my mother. "The boy was even better. Like his partner, clearly knows what he's doing. He's a talented fighter."

"He got some good hits in," said Tellus. "I liked him. He should get a 9."

"He's impressive, but the other tributes who earned a 9 were a notch above," said Holliday.

"An 8, then," said my mother. "I think an 8 makes sense. Let's move on and discuss District Ten."

"The girl was okay with the knife, I suppose," said Holliday.

"Too boring," interjected Tellus. "And that was all she did. She should get a 5."

"For once, I agree with Tellus," said Madam Head Gamemaker. "A 5 for the female tribute. And the male…"

"He wasn't even trying," said Casca. "He wasted our time."

"But he showed he could set a fire," said Holliday. "That's a valuable skill."

"Like Casca said earlier," said Tellus, "fires get tributes killed."

"That sounds like a 3 to me," said my mother. "Any protests?"

She waited a moment, but no one challenged her.

"Very well then," said Madam Head Gamemaker. "We're getting there. District 11. The girl tribute was… interesting."

"She creeped me out," said Tellus. "Why wouldn't she stop whispering to herself?"

"I noticed that too," said Holliday. "I thought that maybe she was just encouraging herself."

"Whatever she was doing, I didn't like it," said Tellus.

"I thought it was rather clever," said Casca. "See, for those who actually were paying attention, she wasn't just setting traps- she was poisoning them. It seems as though she plans on booby-trapping the whole arena."

"An interesting take," said Madam Head Gamemaker. "That warrants a high score, in my opinion. A 7?"

The other Gamemakers agreed, nodding in response.

"As for the other tribute," said Casca, "they were not nearly as impressive. They tried their best with the knife, but tributes should know if they're at the end of the sessions, they need to do more than that to earn a good score."

"I agree," said Tellus.

"A 4, then," said Madam Head Gamemaker.

"I agree," said Holliday.

"Last district," sighed my mother. "The boy was quite good."

"He's clearly very strong and adept with the axes," said Casca. "Could be a solid threat in the arena."

"I could see him pulling many sponsors," noted Holliday.

"A 7, then?" asked Casca. "Or higher?"

"The climbing and axe-throwing mixed together seems to achieve a better score," said Madam Head Gamemaker. "I think an 8 suits him."

"And the girl?" asked Holliday.

"Average," said Casca. "She knows her plants, she set a fire. A 5 to me."

"I agree," my mother replied. She turned toward Elton, who was holding the notepad. "Did you get all of that?"

Elton nodded. "Yes, Madam Head Gamemaker."

"Good," she said, turning back to the table. "You are all dismissed."

The Gamemakers rose from their chairs, some stretching and yawning. Many exited hurriedly, grateful that the day was over. Truthfully, it had been a long process, but it was interesting to see the inside perspective.

My mother walked over to us. "The notepad, please."

Elton wordlessly handed it over. My mother examined it, reading the scores.

"An interesting mix this year," she said offhandedly.

"Anyone you have your eye on?" I asked.

My mother's eyes flicked up towards me. "Not in particular," she said.

"Really?" asked Elton. "There are some tributes who are clearly stronger than others."

"That is true," my mother agreed. "But the Games are full of surprises. Sometimes the mental game is more important than the physical. There are always tributes who fizzle out earlier than expected, and others who make it further than you ever imagined. That's part of the entertainment."

We both nodded, soaking up the wisdom in her words.

"Thank you for taking these notes," she said. "I will be seeing you tomorrow. Another big day for us."

"Big day," I echoed. Minerva Hargrove gave us a small wave and swept from the room, leaving only a few of us still remaining.

"What did you two think?" asked Holliday, walking up to us. "Was it different than you expected?"

"Very," said Elton. "I usually don't pay attention to the weaker tributes, but it was interesting to see what everyone had to offer."

"Sometimes the small ones manage to outlast," said Holliday.

Tellus walked up dramatically, his eyes narrowed at us. Well, actually- narrowed at me, not both of us.

"I didn't appreciate you undermining my authority, Hargrove," said Tellus, still not entirely sober.

"Madam Head Gamemaker asked for an answer, and I gave her one," I said, not impolitely.

"I thought she handled herself well," said Holliday. "Go home and clean yourself up, Tellus, you're a mess."

He rolled his eyes. "You're not the boss of me."

"Grow up," said Holliday, turning her back on him. She smiled at us. "See you both tomorrow, then. The tribute interviews are always interesting."

"They are," Elton agreed. She spun on her heel and left. Tellus followed a moment later, but not before casting a dark look in my direction.

Only Elton and I were left now.

"That was wild," he said, rubbing his eyes. "I don't know what I thought happened at these things, but not that."

"I was surprised that so few of them seemed to care," I noted.

"I mean, I suppose it's not super important for them," he said. "The Mentors care, and the tributes care, and the audience cares, because it all affects sponsorships, but the Gamemakers are neutral. I guess that's why they're the ones to assign scores."

"Any predictions?" I asked playfully.

He shook his head, grinning. "The Careers, always. I love watching them. You?"

"I do like the Careers," I said, musing. "But I'm not sure. It's difficult to keep track of all of them."

"True," he said. "Sometimes it's better to see who survives the first night and then make your bets."

"That's what I usually do," I agreed.

He gestured towards the exit. "Want to walk out together?" he asked.

I nodded. "Sure."

We left the room, flicking off the lights as we left. It had been an interesting day, and I was looking forward to seeing the developments of tomorrow.

*Tribute Scores:

Virgil Amatore: 8

Glowla Lush: 9

Caligula Van Zandt: 10

Sadie Wilson: 10

Damion Cloud: 5

Halley Todd: 6

Muir Jansen: 10

Isla Evenair: 8

Samuel Harris: 1

Ainsley Blare: 7

Deltro Litmen: 5

Salome Terris: 5

Travis O'Quinn: 8

Chaney Hallows: 6

Ianto Baines: 7

Levi Viscose: 6

Journie Teffs: 8

Reese Hastings: 7

Ethan Hart: 3

Jessie Tuscon: 5

Parker Dillio: 4

Alula Callahan: 7

Dale Orion-Poplar: 8

Sienna Asher: 5

The tribute scores will be published on the blog as well, and you'll be able to reference them there! Special thanks to sherezade96 for the helpful tips :) I thought Bellona's POV would be a nice way to keep everything neutral, as well as clarify why certain tributes earned certain scores. For the most part, I went with what you guys gave me, but I tried to be realistic.

Next up is the Interviews! Only a few chapters left before we hit the arena! I'm exciting but also dreading it because I love all of these characters, you know? This is probably the last time I'll update before Christmas, so happy holidays to those of you who are celebrating right now! Be sure to let me know what you thought of these scores/this chapter, and I'll see you next time!

-r-b*