Chapter 19:

Rodrick Tang, 18, District One

Rodrick wishes there wasn't so much fakeness in this, everyone putting on a charade to both the Capitol and their allies. He knows it's causing his bluntness to make him out to be an asshole in his alliance, but he's not changing his strategy now. He will keep being cold to every single one of them, he won't make friends with them, and he certainly won't feel guilty when they die before him so that he can become the victor, just like his mother has been training him to do. He especially isn't going to feel bad when his much more innocent allies die, nope, definitely not.

If they could just get the damn hint already that Rodrick doesn't want to be their friends, that would be great. Marian and Tiv got the hint and instead those two have been chatting away as they wait backstage for these interviews to be over with already. Although he is keeping an eye on them, suspecting that Tiv might betray District loyalty if it came down to him or Marian. Can't say he blames her, considering his status – but he is going to show the Capitol otherwise tonight. Then there's Orin, who just does zir own thing, barely talking to any of them, yet no one seems to be questioning that or trying to be zir friend. But Kaz…he won't stop trying to talk to Rodrick and he's already friendly with Abel, so Rodrick keeps getting subjected to forced conversations with the two boys.

At least if there's one good part of all of these false pleasantries that are the interviews, it's the fact that he's up second and once they're sitting to the side of the stage, they can't be talking to him there.

"Are you nervous?" Abel asks them as Claudia takes the stage to begin this show, getting a variety of responses from the alliance. Marian shrugs her shoulders as Tiv shakes her head, Orin stares blankly ahead at the entrance to the stage, while Kaz takes his time thinking over his answer.

"A little bit," Kaz answers Abel, glancing at Rodrick and the others briefly before looking back at Abel, seemingly more comfortable with him than the others. Great, another sub-alliance to be weary of. See, why can't they all just openly say they would rather go off alone or be in pairs? "Mostly worried about the noise from the crowd."

Abel gives him a reassuring smile and Rodrick fights the urge to roll his eyes, not believing that Abel is actually friendly with Kaz. Surely it's all just an act and Kaz is falling right for it. "I'm sure you'll do great."

"Let's kick things off with Nativity Nadal from District One!"

They all look over at Tiv at the sound of Claudia calling out her name, bringing their conversation to a stop. "I'll try not to impress them too much that they don't pay attention to you," Tiv tells them, blowing a mocking kiss at them as she laughs before heading out onto the stage.

Tiv is everything the victors in One have tried to coach them to be for their interviews to win over the crowd. She's charming and even a little flirty towards them, giving some winks and blowing kisses when some cheer out at an answer from her. She doesn't back down from Claudia's questions, even stopping the host from trying to slap a narrative on her and giving her the truth of her life. The crowd laughs and cheers for her, and Tiv is clearly basking in the attention and it just makes her amp up her actions. Tiv is everything that Rodrick should be for his interview, yet can't be. He can't be pleasant and flirty – not that he could even give a good shot at flirting.

"Alright Tiv, we're nearing the end of your interview, so any last thing you would like to say?"

Tiv contemplates her answer for a few seconds before giving the crowd a winning grin and winking at them, "I'm about to show you just how deadly this pretty face can be."

Tiv walks off to her seat to loud applause, waving and blowing more kisses at the crowd as Rodrick tenses backstage, recognizing just how important these next few minutes are going to be. He has to show the Capitol that he should be given a fair chance in this arena regardless of his past.

And really, how can they frown upon his murder that was training for the very death match they're cheering about now?

"And now for one that we have all been curious about since the very first Reaping," Claudia tells the crowd, quieting them down as Rodrick adjusts the constricting tie he has on and takes a deep breath to steady himself and push down any stupid emotions threatening to come out right now. "Let's bring out Rodrick Tang!"

Rodrick keeps his shoulders back and face neutral as he heads out onto the stage, expecting applause from the crowd but instead being met with an awkward mix of applause and some jeers at him, catching him off guard for a moment as he takes his seat across from Claudia. He…didn't expect some to not be happy to see him on the stage… Can he even win them over?

"Alright Rodrick, I'm going to cut to the chase here," Claudia starts and Rodrick brings his attention back to the host, keeping his face blank and not letting his uncertainty show through. Rodrick nods his head at her, prompting her to ask the question he knows she is going to ask. "We saw you at the Reaping in a prison jumpsuit and handcuffs…what was your crime?"

Rodrick knows Claudia knows the answer, yet she still wants him to be the one to tell the crowd. And how he answers this…is crucial. Rodrick clears his throat as he addresses the host, "Look, Claudia, I have been training for the Hunger Games for years. Many people have. Yet you see some where once they get into the Games, they can't kill or the guilt of taking a life stops them from winning. I was not going to find out if I would be like that in the arena where failure would mean my death. That's why I murdered that old man, to prove I am capable of killing in the arena. It's what my mother had been training me towards for years."

The crowd murmurs at this and Rodrick glances out at them, finding them not looking too happy about his crime. He turns his gaze back to Claudia, finding the host contemplating her next question as she stares at him. "So you're saying your mother encouraged you to murder an old man?"

"Yes, she did," Rodrick answers immediately, getting gasps of surprise from the crowd that just confuses him. "For years she has been coaching me on how to control my emotions and how to stop myself from getting hurt. So of course she encouraged me to do that instead of finding out in the arena where I could get hurt."

"But it didn't work out for you, clearly," Claudia points out to him and Rodrick narrows his eyes slightly. "You were imprisoned for it. Why would you still volunteer after that?"

"I knew I could win the Games if given the chance," Rodrick tells her, crossing his arms as he stares her down. "And I would rather die fighting in the arena while proving myself than rot in a jail cell for the rest of my life."

Claudia purses her lips, clearly not happy with interviewing him, yet she tries to keep up the pleasantries. "Well, Rodrick, any last thing you would like to say?"

"I won't let you down, mother," Rodrick answers right away, sitting up taller and puffing out his chest. "I will win these Games."

The buzzer sounds and the crowd barely gives applause to him as he stands up, but as he walks over to his seat, some of them begin to boo at him and it grows in volume as he sits. Rodrick keeps his face blank as he sits next to Tiv, trying not to let the boos from the crowd get to him, yet he can feel his stomach twisting at the reaction to him. He didn't expect this… He thought they would support him. He did what they expect them to do starting tomorrow. So why are they disapproving of him?

Fuck…he has to try even harder to win them over in the arena…

"Next up, Marian Lilley from District Two!"

Marian heads out onto the stage with a stubborn look in her eyes and receiving much greater applause than Rodrick did. She leans back in her chair, putting her arm on the back of it and showing off her muscles as she goes in on her family, calling them out for the way they treated her over the years. She doesn't hesitate to point out their bigotry, seeming quite happy to spite them. She makes sure to bring up her girlfriend, blowing a kiss at the camera to her and promising her return.

"Any last things to say?"

Marian nods her head, sitting forward as she looks into the camera. "Jazmyn…I'm getting you out of that hellhole. Just a couple more weeks and then you'll be free."

The crowd cheers for her as she sits next to Rodrick, not even looking at him and confirming that he has had the worst interview so far. He can only hope it doesn't stay that way.

"And now Marian's District partner, Kaz Aberdeen!"

Kaz is doing his best to focus on Claudia as he approaches the host, not the crowd applauding him, and Rodrick catches sight of earplugs to muffle the sound of them. Kaz shakes Claudia's hand as he sits and contemplates each answer for a few seconds. He talks about how training became a passion for him and how it has always been his goal to be the leader of the career pack to prove he is just like everyone else. When Claudia asks him about what else he likes to do aside from training, he very animatedly discusses the game Dungeons and Dragons that he plays with his friends, to the point where Claudia has to politely interrupt him to ask her final question.

"This game does sound very interesting, but I'm afraid we're running out of time. Anything you would like to say to people watching?"

Kaz glances at the crowd and nearly starts biting his nails, stopping when he realizes what he's doing. "Don't count me out. I can win just like any of the other tributes."

"Next up is District Three! We'll start out with Sasha Kolster!"

The stylists at least gave Sasha pants as part of her outfit, helping her walking out onto the stage with the help of a cane, giving Claudia a stubborn look when the host starts to give her a look of pity. Sasha goes in on telling the host what happened to her – a stroke – and how because it's less commonly known about, she had more negative side effects of it than she should have. But she also ensures the Capitol knows that this won't be slowing her down and she's still going to be giving her all.

Yet when Claudia gets to asking about allies, Sasha hesitates and her stubbornness slips away a bit. "Do you have any allies supporting you?"

"I…" Sasha bites her lip and shrugs her shoulders at the host. "There's still an open invitation and I think…we'll see what happens in the bloodbath tomorrow."

The crowd is intrigued by her answer – not to the level of the careers – but still better than for Rodrick…

"And now Sasha's District partner, Samis McCree!"

Samis comes out on the stage and it becomes clear very quickly that he's diverting Claudia's questions away from getting too personal, trying to make jokes instead that fall a little flat on the audience. He seems to realize that his strategy isn't working, and even though he doesn't want to, he slowly starts to open up about his family, specifically his mother that he has been caring for on his own for years after she was diagnosed with early dementia and his father walked out. It starts to earn him sympathy from the crowd, much to his surprise.

"Anything else you would like to say? Maybe to your family?"

Samis nods his head as he looks at the camera, blinking a couple times before taking a deep breath and answering, "Mom, I'm trying my hardest to get home to you. If I don't…Dad, if you still even care the slightest bit…please help her."

Samis gets a surprising amount of applause from the crowd and Rodrick doesn't get it. Why are they caring about these two from Three? Why didn't they like him more for showing them that he is capable of doing exactly what he needs to do to win?

"Time for the last of our career Districts with Orin Rensch from District Four!"

Orin is still just as unimpressive as ze have been the entire time in training as ze go out on the stage, looking rather bored at all of this. Rodrick thought Samis was avoiding giving any information about himself, but Orin truly doesn't reveal anything to Claudia. Ze swiftly avoid the questions, staying closed off, and it works for zim. The crowd likes the mysteriousness ze are giving them, only letting them know that ze are the child of two dentists and has been working there part time for years to help out zir parents and enjoys it very much.

"Anything else you want to tell us, Orin? Come on, bite a little and give us something!"

The crowd laughs at Claudia's dentistry joke but Orin keeps staring at her blankly, blinking a couple times before giving a small shrug. "You'll see what I can do."

The crowd cheers for Orin as ze go to zir seat, looking unimpressed by all of this and making Rodrick wonder why the hell ze even volunteered and why the Capitol is more excited about zim than they were with him. Is it the mysteriousness? Should he have kept quiet and not told them his motives? But that would be dumb, there's no point in beating around the bush. They know he's a criminal and he had to tell them what for himself.

"And last of our careers, Aberforth Barringer!"

Abel is polite as can be as he heads out onto the stage, greeting Claudia with friendliness and only looking a little awkward in his movements as he sits down. Unlike Sasha's stubbornness, Abel is more open with telling her about the training accident he had where he was thrown out of the fighting arena and into a cement wall, that combined with a fall breaking many bones and potentially leaving him paralyzed from the waist down. It was a wakeup call for him and he found purpose again working on the docks, still able to use his upper body well, but he never lost the dream of volunteering. So when his friend was picked and gave him the option instead, he took the chance.

"That is quite the friendship you have there if he was willing to face Okeanas' rage for you!" Claudia says and Abel nods his head, letting out a bit of a chuckle at it. "Anything you would say to him or your family right now?"

"Leith…thanks again for this," Abel tells the camera quietly, but Rodrick doesn't miss the flash of doubt on his face. Good, something to use against him. "And moms, sisters…I'll be home soon. I promise you."

Somehow, the crowd likes the crippled rogue volunteer more than the murderer rogue volunteer… Rodrick leans back in his chair, fighting to keep his face neutral as rage slowly builds in him that he's the least popular of his alliance…and a bit of fear that he was wrong about being able to get the Capitol on his side.

He can't have been wrong.


Artem Nobyl, 14, District Five

Going out in front of the entire country and having everyone focused on purely him and everything wrong about him is probably Artem's worst nightmare… He doesn't want to hear what they'll say about him, doesn't want them to ask him what happened. He knows they will and if he doesn't answer, it will look bad on him after Sasha and Abel were so open about their accidents.

But that's the problem. For them, it was accidents that caused them to be disabled. Artem was born this way…there's always been something wrong with him, he's never been normal like them…

Artem takes a deep breath, trying to focus on the encouragement that Grey has been giving him, telling him all about how he can get far in the Games because he won't be alone and has other people with him. And he's right. Artem knows he wouldn't be able to do this on his own…he's lucky that he has Grey and Gwenith as his allies. He still doesn't know how he feels about Sasha still not giving a definitive answer…but it seems like she is still considering it.

And Grey doesn't seem like he wants to give up until she's dead.

"And it is time for District Five! First up, Margaery Fox!"

Artem watches his District partner go out onto the stage, an anxious pit beginning to form in his stomach as he knows he's up next. Margaery looks so sweet and innocent as she sits on the stage, answering Claudia's questions charmingly, even shedding a few tears as she talks about her family and how she hopes she'll be able to return home to them. She brings up her alliance with Dresden, her eyes wide with hope as she discusses her older ally that is helping her out and reminds her of a big brother. She's so good at winning them over…Artem has no idea how he is going to follow up after her…

"What can we expect from you in the arena?"

Margaery tilts her head slightly to the side as she contemplates her response, before flashing a huge grin at the crowd. "Just because I am small and little does not mean you should underestimate me!"

She gets a good amount of applause from the crowd as she takes her seat, leaving Artem frozen in place as Claudia moves on, "And now let's hear from her District partner, Artem Nobyl!"

A hand on his shoulder makes Artem jump and he glances back to find Grey smiling encouragingly at him. "You can do this. Just remember what I told you to do and you'll be fine."

Artem nods his head before taking a deep breath and slowly heading out onto the stage, blinking against the blinding lights and feeling self-conscious about his crutch as he approaches Claudia, but he keeps repeating Grey's words in his head. This is who I am, there's no changing it. My allies accept me for who I am, they will too.

Artem awkwardly takes his seat across from Claudia, resting his crutch next to him as the host shakes his hand. At least he has his right hand, otherwise this would have just been even more awkward than he's already making it. "Welcome, Artem! How are you doing?"

"I'm alright," Artem answers honestly, knowing that it's what Letha coached him to do. Yet he can't help but feel like he will just sound a bit like he's going for their pity. "A bit nervous, I'll admit."

"No need to be nervous! I promise I'm not scary, just don't ask Elliot," Claudia fake whispers to the crowd, getting them to laugh at the comment about her partner. She's all smiles as she turns back to Artem, helping him relax a little bit. "Why don't we start with telling us a bit about yourself?"

Artem nods his head nervously, glancing out at the crowd watching him silently, waiting to hear all about his curious appearance. "I'm sure you all want to know about this," Artem says, raising his left arm. He lets out a sigh when he sees Claudia's curious look, knowing she'll just ask him about it anyways. That's all everyone ever does when they meet him – want to know why he looks different, not who he is. "I'm not like Sasha or Abel who had some accident. I was just born this way and have been…different…my whole life."

"I'm sure you've had to overcome a lot in your life," Claudia says and Artem nods in agreement. "Surely if you have been able to do all of that, you'll continue to overcome the challenges you'll face in the arena!"

"I sure hope so," Artem answers quietly, trying to stay hopeful for the sake of his fathers, but he's struggling. "I'm lucky that I won't be going alone…"

"Who are you allied with?" Claudia asks him curiously, but he can tell from her face she already knows the answer. Of course they already know every detail about his life… Does she know the things he told Lisia about his darkest moments in the last year? He really hopes she doesn't…he can't let his fathers know about that…

"Grey and Gwenith," Artem answers before glancing over to the side of the stage where the tributes that have already been interviewed sit. He finds Sasha right away, staring at him with a face full of conflicting emotions. "Maybe one more if she agrees."

The crowd reacts to this statement, surprising Artem as he turns back to Claudia. "Well you never know what can happen in the arena! We've seen even more surprising alliances form in the heat of action. But we're nearly out of time here, so anything else you would like to say?"

Artem starts frowning, feeling like he has so much he wants to say to his fathers…yet none of it he wants to say in front of the entire nation. "I guess…to my fathers…I'm trying here, I really am…"

The buzzer goes off shortly after that and the crowd gives him a decent amount of applause, but not nearly to the level of most of the careers. Of course not, he's just a hopeless young boy, not a trained fighter like them…

Artem stands up, trying his hardest not to get off balanced as he gets his crutch situated – thankfully without Claudia trying to unnecessarily help him – and heads over to his seat, keeping his head down as he walks past the careers, past his potential ally who he doesn't want to look at in case she is offended by him pointing her out in his interview. But he was just doing what Grey suggested…

When he finally sits, he lets out a sigh as he glances at the crowd, hoping he made a good enough impression that they won't immediately count him out tomorrow.

"Now we're off to District Six with Iroha Kinoshita!"

Iroha heads out onto the stage, face stone cold as she refuses to look at the crowd. She takes her seat quietly across from Claudia, refusing to answer any of the questions until it turns to asking about her family. Then, she fully opens up, describing in great detail the years of abuse she has experienced at the hands of the father of her children. Claudia sits back in stunned silence as the mother talks about how Kayden cannot be allowed to continue to abuse both herself and her son Noah, and especially not her new baby girl that was delivered yesterday evening.

Iroha ends by looking directly at the cameras, her face pleading at the Capitol and those with the power to help her and her children. "Please, I am begging you…someone, anyone, stop Kayden. Do not let him take my children if I don't make it out of the arena. He is no father to them and will continue to abuse them…"

Claudia is still silent as the buzzer goes off, giving a glance up at the President and Gamemakers as Iroha goes to her seat, before the crowd starts yelling in support of Iroha, also cheering for them to protect her children. The host finally gets herself collected and gets the crowd to quiet down before bringing out the poor tribute having to follow up that interview. And Artem can just feel that he won't be remembered…not with Iroha right after him… "Okay, we must continue on with Dresden Kahlo from Six!"

Dresden is aware of how the crowd isn't really paying attention to him anymore, making Artem feel bad and watch his interview intently. Dresden is polite and kind as he answers Claudia's questions, unafraid of being softer here to try to win over the crowd. He looks a little unhappy when his outfit is brought up and he discusses the store his parents own, selling the style of clothing, but he quickly turns the family discussion to his sister who is his best friend, and also brings up his girlfriend. Artem can't help the pang of jealousy at him having so many people he's close to and struggles to push the feeling down.

"So what would you want to say to those rooting for you?" Claudia asks him at the end of his interview.

"I'm fighting to win, so please don't lose hope," Dresden tells the cameras before the buzzer sounds and he goes to his seat, giving Iroha a mixed look as he sits next to her.

"Next up is our two youngest tributes, both from District Seven! First up, Betula Washington!"

Betula is angry as they head out onto the stage and Claudia tries to keep the interview on track, but Betula doesn't allow her to do that, instead getting angry at the host and the Capitol for having the cure for their cancer, yet they don't help those in the Districts. Claudia can barely get any questions in as Betula continues to rant about how unfair it is that they have to die because they don't have the same healthcare in Seven as the Capitol does. They end the interview by pulling off what Artem didn't even know was a wig and throwing it Claudia. "Thanks for sentencing me to death."

Claudia sits in shock for a few seconds with the wig sitting in her lap as Betula storms over to their seat, before a crew member comes out and takes the wig from her. "Alright," Claudia clears her throat and tries to smile at the crowd. "How about we hear from Pascal Flores?"

Pascal is silently fuming as he goes out on the stage, crossing his arms as he sits across from Claudia and scowls at her. The host does her best to be unbothered by the glaring preteen across from her, asking lighthearted and insubstantial questions that get only yes or no answers from Pascal. Eventually though, he points out the obvious and how she hasn't asked him anything worthwhile.

"Aren't you going to ask me about my family?" Pascal interrupts Claudia and the host gets an uneasy look about this. He doesn't wait for her to answer him, instead turning to the cameras. "Well I have something to say about them," Pascal pauses to give two middle fingers at the camera, getting gasps of surprise from the crowd. "You can suck my ass, Ve-"

Pascal is cut off before he can finish as two guards grab his arms and bring him off stage, the boy still yelling insults at whoever he is angry with, his mic turned off and preventing anyone from hearing him over the music being played.

Well…at least Artem didn't do as poorly as the District Seven pair did…

"How about we move on to District Eight?" Claudia asks the crowd, a very fake smile on her face. "First up, Gwenith Drezzel!"

Gwenith is noticeably trying to keep her calm as she goes out onto the stage, at least it's noticeable to Artem having spent time with her the past few days and seen how quick her temper is. She tries not to get annoyed at Claudia asking her about why she volunteered, but a bit of sass slips through as she tells her how in that moment, it was the only way to get out of a shitty situation. She brings up how Grey has been helping her a lot, looking truly calm for the first time in her interview as she talks about her District partner.

"And anything else you want to say?" Claudia asks her.

Gwenith frowns at the question, staying silent for a few seconds before speaking up in a quiet voice, "Mom, I'm going to find you when this is over."

Claudia clearly wants to ask more about this, but the buzzer sounds before she gets the chance and Gwenith quickly heads over to her seat. "Well time to hear from Gwenith's ally and District partner, Grey Pendleton!"

Grey heads onto the stage, grinning and waving at the crowd, looking more casual than the rest after ditching his bowtie backstage. Grey is so confident and charismatic…exactly what Artem wishes he could have been for his interview, but he'll never be that way. He'll never have that confidence in himself… He's all smiles as he greets Claudia, starting to answer her questions about why he volunteered but taking over and talking about what he wants to talk about. He tells the crowd about his cousin's accident and how it left her physically disabled and how she's never quite gotten her life back together, and so Grey is here to get the means for her to do so.

"You know, that's why I have some of the allies I do," Grey points out and Artem picks his head up, wondering what Grey is going to say about them. "Artem reminds me a lot of Quill and so I had to help him. Of course, in the end it will only be to a certain extent since I need to win for Quill, but at least I can give him a bit of aid in the arena. And then there's Sasha…"

"What about Sasha?" Claudia asks, finally getting a question in and only somewhat hiding her irritation.

Grey lets out a loud sigh as he slowly brings his gaze over to where Sasha sits. "Well, I've been trying very hard to show Sasha that she needs my help, but she keeps stubbornly saying no. She reminds me the most of my cousin and…I just wish she would accept my help."

The buzzer goes off before they can have any sort of response and the crowd starts cheering at Sasha and Artem feels a little bad about them putting pressure on her right now, even though he knows it would be good for her to join their alliance. And it's not too late yet…

Sasha avoids Grey's look as he passes her. Grey slows a little to grin at Artem, which Artem tentatively returns, and give him a pat on the shoulder before heading to his spot.

"I guess we'll have to wait and see what happens in the arena tomorrow," Claudia tells the crowd, much to their disappointment. "Because it is time for District Nine. First up, Asha Kader!"

Asha is hesitant as she walks out on the stage in an outfit that shocks Artem and also the crowd, but the crowd reacts with cheers to the leather corseted dress while Artem feels uncomfortable. Asha slows at the crowd's cheers, her face confused as she takes her seat across from Claudia and is hesitant with the questions at first, but as she keeps getting praise from the crowd, she puts her shoulders back and gains confidence, even starting to flirt with the crowd a bit. But when Claudia asks her what she does back home, Asha freezes up and is very slow to give an answer to her, just remarking that she likes to be in control of others. It's a cryptic response that clearly has the crowd wanting to know more, but Asha doesn't give up more information about it.

"So if you like being in control, what can we expect from you in the arena?"

Asha takes a long moment to answer this, leaning back in her chair and slowly recrossing her legs and drawing the attention of the crowd to the bare skin. "Hmm, let's just hope the Gamemakers are going to put some whips in that arena and then you'll see."

The buzzer goes before the crowd can have any further explanation and Asha seems to enjoy teasing them about it as she saunters over to her seat, swaying her hips and giving them some flirting winks.

"Well, guess we will have to hope Head Gamemaker Arune is going to do that," Claudia tells the crowd, getting cheers of agreement. "But for now, it is time for Laine Lawson!"

Laine is a much more subdued personality compared to Asha was as he heads out onto the stage, more sweet than Asha's flirty mood. Laine is upfront with Claudia, answering all of her questions with very little hesitation and telling the Capitol all about himself. His family has never had much, yet he still has such a positive attitude about life, something that makes Artem envious that he can't be the same when he has had more opportunities. Laine flatters the Capitol by talking about how he's always dreamed of traveling to the Capitol, so while he is afraid for what's to come in the arena, he's trying to take it one day at a time.

"So you seem like a nice guy," Claudia points out and Laine gives a chuckle and a bashful smile. "Surely someone like you isn't going into the arena without any allies."

"That is correct, yes, I have allies," Laine answers with a nod of his head. "Asha…and I have decided to work together, and Sissel joined in training."

Claudia doesn't miss the hesitation when he brought up Asha, but the buzzer goes off before she can question him about it. "Well guess we'll have to get more details from Sissel!" Claudia says as Laine heads over to his seat. "We'll hear from him soon, but first from District Ten is Ally Ishmael!"

Ally is polite as she takes her seat with Claudia, yet shows a stubbornness to stand up for the things she stands for. While still staying respectful, Ally brings up some of the discrepancies in wealth and living conditions in the Districts compared to the Capitol, stating how she would love to see more opportunities be brought to the Districts – while still giving praise to the Capitol's hospitality. She moves on to discussing her two allies – the pair from Seven – and how so many people have overlooked them, but she knows they deserve to have every fair opportunity in the Games and she is going to help them.

"Anything else you would like to say?" Claudia asks her with an eyebrow raised. "You have already expressed quite the range of views."

"That's because I am a stand up girl," Ally answers the host immediately. "I won't stop believing in what I stand for and won't back down. And that is going to apply to the arena."

Ally's interview ends, going surprisingly well considering she's one of the youngest – better than Artem's – and then Claudia is bringing out her District partner. "And let's hear from Sissel Wetherburn!"

Sissel is cheery as he heads out on the stage, having already talked a bunch backstage about his jacket with peacock feathers on it and talking off anyone who would listen's ear off about the birds. And he does the same to Claudia, not talking about anything other than birds, making sure to tell the Capitol all about the Wetherburn Avian Sanctuary and Rehabilitation Center that his grandmother founded and he helps run after her death a few years ago. He tells some funny stories about his grandmother's parrot cussing people out and about how cute owls look floating in a bathtub. When Claudia tries to talk about arena things, Sissel deflects back to birds, talking about his hobby of falconry and using that to hunt and how he has worked hard to build traps to collect birds without harming them.

By the end of the interview, Claudia seems fed up by not getting any answer from him that doesn't have to do with birds in some way, yet Sissel is unbothered by it. "So can we expect something bird related from you in the arena then?"

Sissel tilts his head to the side before giving a delayed chuckle to this question and a very noncommittal shrug. "Guess that all depends on if there's any birds in the arena."

The buzzer goes off without much answer from Sissel on what exactly he's even going to do in the arena and the crowd seems a little disappointed by it, yet Sissel doesn't give them a second glance as he goes to his seat.

"We have made it to our final District!" Claudia says with renewed excitement. "First up, Jendaya Barrett!"

Jendaya heads out onto the stage, giving the crowd a small smile, but keeping herself reserved as she takes her seat. She is friendly with the crowd, but still mourning the loss of her husband from just a couple months ago, getting the pity from them. But she keeps herself together, telling the crowd how she's strong and trying her best to move on and survive in the arena for his sake because he would want to see her living her best life still. Jendaya makes sure to talk about how she's been taking care of the winery after her husband's death, staying strong in his memory.

"That sure seems like a lot to go through," Claudia says to her and Jendaya nods her head, dabbing at her eye. "But it seems like you are quite strong to go through all of that and be here today!"

"I am, Claudia," Jendaya tells the host, taking a deep breath and straightening in her chair. "Stronger than most people think. They look at me and just see a pretty girl, but I am a lot more than just that. I won't give up in that arena."

Her answer gets some cheers from the crowd and Jendaya gives them a polite smile at it, shortly before the buzzer indicates the end of her interview. Jendaya heads to her seat, giving the crowd some small waves as Claudia gets ready for the final interview. "And last up, we have Grant Gallitan-Montgomery!"

Grant is subdued as he takes the stage, the poor boy having to wait until the very end to be interviewed. Artem couldn't imagine having to wait that long and watch everyone else give their interviews first and know he wouldn't compare to them… Grant does his best to answer Claudia's questions about his home life, but he's clearly tired and knows the crowd is ready for the interviews to be done, especially since he doesn't have any tragic history like Jendaya, or some interesting hobby like Sissel. He just has a normal life with his parents, not wealthy, but certainly not poor. Claudia does her best to get the crowd interested in him, but he doesn't have any allies to talk about.

"Alright, Grant, you're the last interview," Claudia points out as it gets close to ending. "Any final thing you want to say to wrap up all of the interviews?"

Grant looks over at the other tributes sitting on the stage, his face quite bleak as he takes in his competition. "Not really. I'm not special like some of them. Surely this will be another year where Eleven doesn't have a victor."

"You don't know that!" Claudia says, trying to keep the interview cheery, but there's nothing she can do about Grant's mood. Artem feels for the boy, understanding the hopelessness in him and wanting to help him, but he doesn't think Grey would want him as an ally, otherwise he would have asked already.

But thankfully for Claudia's sake, the buzzer goes off, ending the interviews on a somber note. "Well everyone, that concludes the interviews for the 137th Hunger Games! Tomorrow we will see just what this tributes are capable of doing and soon see who will be our next victor of Hunger Games!"


We made it through the interviews, my dudes! Interviews are probably my least favorite part of the pre-Games so these were a struggle, so needless to say I'm happy to be through them XD Not too many big surprise reveals here after the private sessions, but we still get some tea about alliances and stuff! Any interview that surprised you? I hope they were all different enough, I was Struggling XD Because I'm terrible at describing outfits, I'll be making a blog post with all the interview outfits! That will be up on my random story blog and will be done at some point today.

There's only one more chapter left before the Games start! I'm so hyped for the Games XD We'll check in next chapter with Pascal, Sissel, and Lisia for the Night Before! There will be much tea next chapter lol. That will be up on Friday, June 5th (I know, not a Monday XD) because I need a Friday update between Renegades prologues lol. And then June 19th is quickly approaching!

RQ #19: idk I'm out of ideas so I'll just ask which interview was your favorite?

See you all soon for the Night Before! In the meantime, please check out Renegades if you're interested and consider subbing :)